Nine Months
by slytherensangel26
Summary: The readers have spoken! Connor and Kira True-Heart are pregnant! Follow the expectant parents as they prepare for their first born! This fic flows in the veins of the Raising The Pterodactyl series and takes place alongside The Miscreants story. Rated M for Mature!
1. Prologue-- 9 Months!

**I put it up to a vote and you spoke your minds! So, after some thought and many mornings just thinking about this, I figured out how to do this!**

 **The biggest challenge in figuring out format came about because there is already a narrative in place with _Miscreants: Origin Story._ So, I decided the best way is to write everything going on with our favorite couple is to write this as an accompanying story line that focuses on Conner and Kira...and of course Tris. **

**For those of you that follow my fics, you know what to expect when it comes to these lovebirds. For those of you who just found this, these two are very into each other (naughty laugh) and there will be a more than a few lemons involved with these guys.**

 **You have been warned!**

 **Expect lemons, naughty talk, humor, and some cute moments (most of those will involve Kayla.)**

 **I guess that's about it!**

 **If you don't want to feel lost, I recommend reading Miscreants so you can keep up!**

 **Ok, that's about it, but one last thing:**

 **Disclaimer: Power Rangers is the property of Hasboro/Saban brands and I have no affiliations with either of them. This story is a product of way too much time on my hands and is for the enjoyment of my readers and for the improvement of my personal writing skills. No money is being made from this.**

 **There, that should do it. Read on and see me at the bottom!**

* * *

 **(Picking up from Chapter 22 of A Time of Peace)**

 **Angel Grove Women's Center**

Connor and Tommy sat in the waiting room of the women's center. Kayla sat in between them, watching the TV monitor in fascination as an informational video played on the screen. "Daddy, is that what babies look like in the tummy?"

Tommy grinned at her. "Yep. That's how you and your brother looked like before you were born; it takes a very long time for babies to get to that size."

Connor smiled at the exchange. Ever since the hospital room when his powers came to full life, he'd been seeing everything differently. Mainly, he could see the spirits of people…not dead people…living spirits.

That night they came back from LA, when he was laying in bed with Kira, he could see the faintest glow around her belly. At first it had been hard to see because his mate's glow was even brighter, But his shaman's eyes soon adjusted and it was easier to see.

'What do you see?" Tommy asked as Kayla leaned against him.

Connor smiled at his favorite little ninja. "She's happy and bright…and I can see a faint outline of a scar over her the spot where her heart is. It's a faint thin line, but it's there. If I had to guess, it's probably from the emotional wounds from losing Psyche and Mischief."

Tommy nodded. "That sounds about right."

Connor then looked at his mentor. "In you, I see a happy glow, but also scarring. Nothing raging and angry, but I can't un-see it now."

Tommy nodded. "Again, that's not shocking. You don't go through our kind of lifestyle without it leaving scars of all kinds." He took a deep breath. "It's a good gift you have there. Spending time with your father will help to strengthen those skills."

Not long after, Connor was called into the back.

When he walked in, Kira was resting on the exam table. He pulled up a chair behind her and she graced him in with a bright smile. "Hey Jock."

"Hey, Rockstar. How ya feeling?"

"I'm ready to be out of here, I'm kind of wanting some Olive Garden…oh and a long bath."

"Well, I hope you'll wait till I at least give you guys the good news." The doctor said as she walked in with the paper. "I'm Dr. Leah and congrats are definitely in order!"

Connor couldn't resist kissing his wife and she returned his kiss.

A few moments later, Dr. Leah coughed. "Alright you guys, let's focus before you set this exam room on fire."

Kira broke the kiss, not the least bit embarrassed; Connor was beaming. "So, what's the next step?"

Dr. Leah put the folder down. "For now, any drinking or smoking needs to stop, and the prenatal vitamins start. Also, now's a good time as any to start looking for a good OBGYN. Don't be afraid to shop around a bit and you don't have to settle for the first provider you see. Kira, this whole process is about you and this baby and delivering a happy and healthy baby."

She paused and looked at Conner. "It won't be as big a deal till later on, but you should start taking over any chore that involves fumes. This involves pumping gas, cleaning up after any animals and if you guys are going to be painting a room for the baby, keep her far away from the area until the whole room is aired out. "

Connor nodded, taking in every word. The doctor turned her attention back to Kira. "If you don't already, start eating fresh healthy food and exercising regularly, but don't do anything strenuous. Short walks in the park and along the lake shore are a good way to start."

Kira nodded. "That sounds really good." She looked at the doctor, "Anything else?"

The doctor smiled at her and shook her head. "That should be it for now. Above all, enjoy this time. Carrying a baby inside can be a really amazing thing. I'm sure your Aunt here can help you guys figure it out."

"You bet," Kimberly said with a smile. "We're going to have your back every step of the way!"

* * *

 **So, giving Connor a special shaman power was a last minute idea and I hope you all will keep an open mind. What do you guys think of all of this? Let me know in a review. is there anything you guys are looking forward to reading about? I've got a few things figured out like what food cravings she'll have and what the baby will be along with it's name. But if you have ideas feel free to leave them in the review section or in a PM.**

 **Along with this, I'm posting the first chapter so I'll see you there!**


	2. Playing Around

**You get a twofer here. You're welcome!**

 **Lemons and romance ahead!**

* * *

 **The Cottage**

 **Later that day**

Connor and Kira walked into the living room of their cottage. They were in great spirits; after they left the women's center, they'd had a light lunch at Olive Garden. Tommy, Kim, and the kids had been with them, Kayla had devoured the breadsticks and it had amused their server who said nothing but kept them coming. Tommy had given his daughter a long look, but had smiled at her with a mildly concerned look.

Now, however, all thoughts of that had vanished as Kira walked into the bathroom and turned on the hot water in their clawfoot tub. Connor watched from the doorway as Kira walked into their bedroom and began to strip her clothes off.

"You know, you could have asked me to draw your bath for you." He said softly as he sat on the bed, watching her with growing lust.

Kira nodded as she twisted her locks up and secured them with a plastic hair clip.

When she didn't verbally respond, he got up and wrapped his arms around her and kissed the side of her neck.

"Babe?"

That made Kira stop and look at him. "What?"

"I said, I could have drawn your bath for you, if you'd just asked."

Kira bit her lip. "I'm sorry Conner, I was in my own world."

"Hey, it's okay." Conner reassured her as he wrapped his arms around her stomach. "What were you thinking about?"

"Honestly everything. I don't know if it's the hormones but I'm just really fucking horny right now and I want you and a bath would feel really good too, I don't know what I want more!"

Conner grinned at her. "Well, let's get you in the bathtub first and then we can get the rest of that handled."

Kira kissed him heatedly and Conner let her have the moment. When the kiss ended, he led her to the bathtub and helped her in. When she sat down, he kissed her again, though this one was kind of awkward.

When the kiss ended. He grinned at her. "I'll be right back."

It didn't take long for him to return to completely naked. Kira grinned at him and scooted back; she gave him a strange look when he didn't join her in the water.

"There's plenty of room in here."

Conner grinned at her as he knelt down on the floor next to her. "Yeah, but I want to take care of you first and what I want to do would be difficult with the limited space in here."

"And what would that be?" Kira asked him with a sultry look on her face.

Connor grinned at her. "This."

He kissed her heatedly and Kira responded instantly as his hand cupped her cheek. It was as if he was holding back a well of passion; as he kissed her, that restrain slowly faltered and his hand began to trail down the valley between her breasts and down her stomach.

"Yesss." Kira moaned as she opened up for him.

He ended the lip lock and watched her face as he worked her over in the water. He put an arm behind her, realizing that she didn't have a spa pillow behind her head. He made a mental note to buy one later. He'd done that just in time for Kira to lean her head back as he massaged her sacred area.

"Connor!" She gasped as he felt her walls start to convulse around his fingers. He smiled at her and worked in and out of her faster and she came hard, gasping for air and moaning loudly at the same time. Her whole body shuddered and he stilled, watching in amazement as she rode out the waves of her orgasm.

When she calmed down and looked up at him, giggling softly, he pecked her lips. "How long have you been holding that back?"

"Since we left the doctor's office. I wanted to f…take you in the parking lot and even during our dinner at Olive Garden…but that would get us thrown out. I wanted take you in the garage but you hustled me out of there. I wanted…" She was cut off as he kissed her heatedly again. Her words had worked him up and he was so ready for her!

When the kiss ended, he stood up, and Kira's eyes followed him or rather his manhood that was standing at full attention. He carefully stepped into the tub and sat down opposite her. Kira's eyes were even more hooded as she licked her lips.

He stroked himself under the water and made eye contact with her. "Well, what are you waiting for?"

Kira shifted carefully, using the side of the tub to maneuver over to him. He helped her position herself and when she sank onto him, she moaned softly and closed her eyes.

Connor couldn't help his grin. "That good?"

Kira moved gently against him and he held her steady. When she leaned against him, he whispered something in her ear and her eyes darkened. In seconds flat, they were going again and what started as slow strokes became something else until they were making water go everywhere and Kira was frantically riding him.

They were both lost in their passion as they made love in the warm water. It was such an erotic feeling and when Connor latched onto her breasts, Kira came hard and let lose sounds that he'd never heard before. He thrust up into her and cursed loudly as he came just as hard.

She just felt so _good_ as she spasmed around him!

For the next few minutes, they held onto each other and made out as they both got lost in the thralls of their passion.

When at last their minds cleared Kira smiled tiredly at him. "That was something."

"That good huh?" Conner said with a proud grin on his face.

"Uh-huh." Was all she said as she yawned and rested her head on his shoulder.

It was another shift of her mood and he was content to let her lay against him.

About half an hour passed and when she lifted her head again. She shivered.

Connor was looking at her. "You ready to get out now?"

Kira nodded, looking completely sated.

"I can't get up until you do." Connor prompted her.

She yawned as she crawled off of him and sat against her end of the tub. After he wrapped the towel around his waist, he reached down and helped her to her feet. When she lifted her leg to get out, he surprised her by picking her up, bridal style and lifted her out of the tub.

She yawned again and rested against his shoulder.

 _She must have been more tired than she seemed._ He realized as he toweled off. When they were both dry, he carried her to their bedroom and laid her down on their bed. He couldn't help but stare at her as she rolled over on her side. In a few short months, she'd start to show, and he couldn't wait.

After he put on his sleep shorts and tank top, he took a blanket from the linen closet and draped it over her body.

Checking the front door once more, he turned off the lights and slipped into their bed, settling into a long nap.

* * *

 **That Night**

 **Their** **Bedroom**

Connor lay on his side and gently stroked Kira's stomach. They had both napped quietly for the rest of the day and now just relaxed in their bed…and made out like love sick teenagers.

At some point after waking from their slumber, Conner had lost his sleep pants to her questing hands and was once again naked.

Not that he minded.

Kira never thought he looked so sexy. The top sheet now rested over his hips just covering his lower half. His chest was just a little sweaty from their romps and she could see the small love bite she'd left on his shoulder and even the faint nail scratches she'd left on his back from earlier.

She was pretty pleased with herself. Then her eyes wandered to the week-old tattoo on his arm.

And then Connor drew his fingers over her belly…and tickled her.

Kira busted out laughing and Connor stopped, with a matching smile on his face and then he was kissing her again.

This time, their kiss was interrupted by her growling belly. When they separated, he grinned at her. "Do we want to heat up the leftovers from earlier, or go raid the manor kitchen?"

"We should probably make an appearance at the house, besides, I'm not really in the mood for leftovers."

As it turned out, the kids were waiting up for them. Both Kayla and Kailen were sitting at the table with bowls of ice cream in front of them.

When Connor and Kira walked in, they both looked up at them with grins. "You're back! We thought you'd never wake up. That was a long nap!"

Kira looked up at Tommy who was smirking into his son's hair.

Thankfully, Kira was prepared with an answer. She sat down in the chair across from them.

"Well, today was a pretty busy day and now that I'm pregnant, things take more energy than I had. We did a lot of walking and shopping as it was, going to the doctor and everything took even more energy after all that fun we had, I needed a really long nap!"

"But we had lunch, isn't food energy for the body?" Kayla asked with a wrinkled brow.

Now Tommy was trying too hard to contain his chuckle.

Kira looked at her former mentor with irritation. Thankfully, Connor saved him by getting down to Kayla's level.

"We did nap, but Kira and I were also making a list of things we want to do while waiting for the baby to come.

Kayla cocked her head. "Like what?"

"Well, for starters, in a few months, we're going to have a baby shower."

"Like when Mommy had one for Maverick?"

"You bet, but we've never had a party like that. We were scouring the internet for ideas and then we napped some more!"

"And that's what took you so long…" Kayla still didn't look that convinced.

Kira got an evil look in her eyes and she gave her mentor the fish eye. She carefully knelt to Kayla's level.

"Yeah, it really did take that long to do all of that, we also kissed a lot too and snuggled.

"You did?"

"Well that and some other things, but those other things are secrets that only adults know about. One day, when you fall in love with that lucky boy, and get married to him, you'll find out too."

When she looked up at her mentor, he was frowning at them.

"You mean boys won't be gross anymore?"

"Sadly no, boys will always be gross, just in different ways. When you meet that handsome, lucky boy and fall in love, you may find that you won't mind so much."

That seemed to pacify the Little Ninja and she went back to her ice cream.

When Kira stood back up…slowly, Tommy gave her a dark look, but she said nothing and sat down at the table.

"So, my love, what are you hungry for?" Connor asked with an amused look.

* * *

He ended up making her a simple roast beef sandwich with a side of chips and as she ate, Kayla peppered her with questions.

"Where's the baby now?" she said looking at Kira's stomach. "You don't look like the ladies on the monitor."

"Well, he's very small right now" Conner replied as he sat next to Kayla. "He's even too small to be seen on the sonogram. There's amazing stuff happening right now, but it's way too small for us to see. We just have to trust that it's happening. In another month or so, we'll be able to see what's going on. For now, we just enjoy the time we have before we really have to start preparing for him."

So, what do we do now?" Kayla asked.

"You know, I've been thinking about that." Connor said. "I think that we should start documenting everything since this is our firstborn. I've never been one for journaling but I'm willing to start that along with taking pictures. I want to remember everything about this time."

"That sounds like the start of a memory book." Kimberly said as she walked in to the kitchen. "I had one for Kayla when we found out.

Connor looked at Kira. "What do you say, my sexy wife?"

She kissed him. "Put it on the list...and would you mind getting me another sandwich?"

"Yeah," he said with a smile. "Coming right up."

* * *

 **A couple of days later…**

Connor and Kira sat on the porch on the back of their cottage. Tris was sitting by them on her extra soft bed sunning herself. It was a nice day out and the lighting was perfect for them to take some pictures. Tanya and Aisha were there, standing in the yard as they snapped a series of pictures.

Conner pulled his wife into his lap and wrapped his arms around her. His tattoo was perfectly visible and he put his chin on her shoulder.

"Beautiful! This one is a keeper for sure." Tanya said with a smile.

From behind her, Aisha brought over an empty picture frame that was wrapped in pink and blue ribbons. Conner and Kira sat up with their legs criss crossed and held the frame between them. It was empty except for a black velvet background. As soon as they had the sonogram, it would go in the frame, but for now, it sat empty.

"And one last one, this time with our furry daughter in it." Kira said as she got up from the swing and sat down on the other side of Tris. Her tail was wagging like crazy and she licked them both enthusiasticly.

"Hey girl, calm down." Connor said as he scratched between her ears. "Just a few pictures and then we'll have fun, okay?"

Tris woofed softly and then sat pretty for them.

When it was done, Connor kissed Kira on her forehead and then pulled out the tennis ball out of Tris' toy box. She smiled as he led the three- legged pooch out of her yard and threw the ball.

"Come on, I'll show you how the photoshop program works." Aisha said. "Did you also want an unaltered version for your wall?"

"Yeah, I'd like that. There's a perfect spot next to the ones from the cruise. It seems a perfect spot, seeing as how that's where he was conceived."

Tanya walked on her other side. "This is going to be fun!"

* * *

 ** _First journal entry-Two weeks in_**

 _So, I guess the first entry is mine._

 _I never thought when we decided to take that road trip, that I'd come home bearing this secret inside me. I started reading that book we picked up on pregnancy and know that the makings of my little orca are now attaching themselves to my…womb. What used to be the bane of my existence will now be a part of keeping my little orca healthy and supported throughout this long 42 weeks._

 _Today we took our 2-week pictures and soon they will occupy the first section of our memory book._

 _I guess that's really it for this entry._

 _-Kira_

* * *

 **So, what are your thoughts? Leave me a review to let me know!**


	3. Talks With Dad

**Hi everyone! Welcome back!**

 **This chapter is an easy going filler with Father Son stuff. Enjoy!**

* * *

 **True-Heart Cottage**

 **Mid-Morning**

Steam came pouring out of the bathroom as Connor, wrapped in a towel, opened the door that connected to the master bedroom. He would have loved to sleep in, snuggling his wife, but his dad would be at the manor soon and they had plans to spend a few hours together.

As he towel-dried his hair, Tris poked her nose in through the crack of the door and boofed softly. Connor walked over to the door and let her in; she padded into the room and leaned against him as if telling him good morning. He grinned down at her and scratched her behind the ears.

As she groaned in pleasure, he laughed softly at her. "Give me a few minutes and then we'll go for a car ride, okay?"

At those words, Tris's floppy ears picked up and she tilted her head to the side. Connor chuckled at her, "Yeah, I said 'car ride.' But you gotta let me get dressed first, okay?"

Kira's amused voice made him turn around. "Come here, pretty girl."

As she jumped on the bed, Connor dropped the towel and began to get dressed.

"So, what are you going to do with your dad today?"

"Well, after taking this girl of ours to the groomers, we'll just have a guy day. Probably get lunch and visit the home depot, you know, manly stuff."

Kira grinned at him as he pulled on his jeans. "Well, have fun being all masculine. I'll probably just hang out with the ladies and do some online shopping for baby stuff."

Conner pulled on a red tank top and his choker. He walked over to the bed and sat at the foot of it. "Hey, I saw that you left your laptop on last night, on that baby dresser made of driftwood. Is that what you had in mind for our little orca?"

Kira nodded. "Yeah, I like how it looked and it would fit that ocean theme. Lighter color wood to brighten up the nursery."

Connor grinned at her. "Ok, just checking. While you're shopping online, you could google the local stores. If you find something you like, call me and tell me where."

Kira leaned forward and kissed his lips. "Will do, have fun with your dad!"

Connor kissed her back. "Yes, Ma'am,"

At that moment, Tris thrust her boxy head between them and licked them both.

Connor grinned at the dog and scratched her behind the ears again. "Okay, little girl. You ready to go?"

Tris woofed at him again.

Kira laughed at her again and kissed the side of her head. "Okay, pretty girl. You behave yourself for your dad, okay?"

Tris gave her mom a sloppy kiss and then hesitated to jump off the bed. "I think a ramp would be a good idea too, if you can find a sturdy one. I hate seeing her face plant whenever she tries to jump off the bed."

Connor laughed and helped her off the bed; she licked his face and then ran towards the door. "She's such a strange girl."

Kira got up and opened the door up all the way and Tris ran out and went through the doggy door boofing for joy. When she was gone, Kira turned back to Connor and kissed him properly. "Go have fun, Jock. I'll see you when you get back."

"Love you." He said and kissed her back.

Tris came barging through the door and jumped up again. Connor only shook his head and walked to the rack and picked up her leash; Tris raced past him to towards the Manor.

Does she realize we're going to the groomers?" Connor muttered.

"Probably not…but she will soon." Kira answered him as she handed him his wallet and keys. Slipping on his sunglasses, he pecked her cheek one last time and walked out the door towards the manor.

David was waiting in the kitchen when Connor arrived. Tris was already there thrashing his father's legs with her tail, but when he walked in, she whined at him and sat at his feet.

"Never keep a lady waiting." David said with a wry smile on his face.

"Yeah, but I don't think that applies when that lady has three legs and can still run faster than me to the manor." He paused and clipped the leash to her collar.

"Come on, Tris, let's get this show on the road."

It took some doing to get her into the backseat of the SUV and Connor made a mental note to get a ramp for this vehicle too.

Soon enough, they were on the road and headed to Petco.

* * *

When they walked in, she suddenly realized where she was and she almost made Connor trip over by sitting on his feet looking nervous.

Connor chuckled at her and scratched her behind her ears. "Hey, don't fight me on this. It's only a bath and you need to have it done at least once a month." Tris whined again and then slowly got off his feet.

Connor knelt to her level and scratched her behind her ears. "I promise that I'll be back before you know it and we'll buy you some treats, okay?"

That seemed to win her over and she walked with her tail down towards the grooming station.

There a young adult with rose tattoos on her arms, piercings everywhere and a bandana wrapped around her head greeted them.

"Welcome to Petco! I'm Rosie, how can I help you?"

"Hey, I'm Connor True-Heart and this is Beatrice, or Tris for short. She's got a spa appointment for today."

Rose nodded and typed the information on the computer and nodded. "Yep! I've got all her shot information and everything's in order." She paused and then looked at Tris who was leaning nervously against David's legs. "Wait, this isn't the Tris that those kids were shopping for a few weeks ago?"

"Yep, that would be Tris. We put the kids to work to build her a yard of her own and they did amazing work. She's got the fairy tale garden that all dogs dream of."

Rose grinned at him and then came around to kneel down in front Tris. "Hey you pretty girl. You ready for some serious pampering?" As she said this, she held out her hand for Tris to sniff.

The pittie looked her over and then sniffed.

"She's a first timer, outside of the shelter, she's never been to a groomer. We've only had her about a month." Connor added.

"Well, there's a first time for everything." Rosie answered as Tris finally trusted her enough to walk over to her and sniff some more.

"That's a good girl." Rosie crooned as she slipped a leash over her neck. Conner knelt down. "I'll be here when you're done."

Tris boofed at him and licked his face again. As Rosie led her to the back, Tris shot him a look that he had to fight hard not to notice. He was quiet as he waited for Rosie to get back to the front.

When she did, and noticed his face she shook her head. "Don't sweat it, all dogs give the guilt tripping look. I promise that she'll be treated like a celebrity. I noticed that she's a tripod, are there any other health issues I should be aware of?"

"Nothing that isn't already in her file. She's got a perfect bill of health from the vet."

"Alright then. We'll call you back here when she's done. I just need to confirm your cell phone number."

* * *

"So, Dad, where do you want to eat? It's my treat."

You know what? I'm kind of in the mood for some fast food. My beautiful wife doesn't like me eating out, but she's busy with River and this is my chance."

Conner grinned at his father. "You rebel."

"You betcha, son. Let's hit up that drive in. It's been a while since I had a thick juicy burger loaded with all the fixings!"

"Conner thought hard. "So, we're going to Sassy Sadie's?"

"Yep! That's the place to go!"

* * *

Sassy Sadie's was a drive-in restaurant that had only been around four years. The whole place was modestly decorated in a rustic style and it boasted the biggest smoker in Angel Grove and the food was amazing!

Once they put their orders in, David looked his son over. "Son, there's something I've been meaning to ask you."

"Yeah, what's that?"

"What exactly happened on that cruise ship, before you conceived my grandbaby. You said you spoke to that wise woman that approached you on the ship. What did she say to you?"

Connor exhaled softly and thought back. "Kira had a small freak out, we'd thought we might be pregnant and we were happy about it, but after that whole weird thing that somehow reactivated our powers, Ashley and Andros gave us both exams and we found out that there was no baby. To put it bluntly, she shut me out; it's not the first time she did that, but that's another story. Anyway, I decided to take a walk on the upper deck to give her some space. I'd been there a while when that strange lady approached me and told me that she could sense other shamans. I found out later that she and her grandson hail from an Inuit tribe in Alaska."

"That was the first time I'd ever heard the spirits. The next night, after Kira and I had done it and the baby was conceived, I dreamt of the orca. I wasn't sure what it meant until the next morning and the son handed me the totem necklace."

David nodded. "That's a shaman power. Being able to hear the spirits talking."

Conner paused. "There's something else, Dad. I can also see living spirits."

"Like how?"

"Well, it's something that didn't start happening till after the showdown at the hospital. I didn't realize what was going on because I was out of it and I attributed it to the massive headache I had. The next morning, when I woke up I saw Kira in a whole different light, literally. It's like I see her and then if I focus on her long enough, I can see her spirit and what shape it's in."

"And what did you see?"

"Some scarring. In her heart and in her mind. They're barely there but she's still happy and glowing and I could just see an additional spirit that I know is the baby. It was hard to see at first because it was eclipsed by Kira's light, but it's there."

"Well, that makes sense, because unlike what some people may believe, those unborn babies have a spirit too." David paused and then looked at his son steadily. "Now, look at me with your shaman eyes and tell me what you see."

Connor allowed the power to manifest itself and he looked at his dad in a new way. Sure, there was the usual amount of scarring and the glow was there, but there was also something extra. Over his heart was the outline of a hawk.

"You're a hawk."

David nodded. "That's my spirit guide. Your uncle calls his falcon a Ninjetti Animal Spirit. Your baby will carry the orca spirit. It's a power that's common among shamans. It's how she could identify you. At that point, your power wasn't fully awakened; after that showdown when you were out of it, and you felt that power come to life, that was when it happened for you."

"What's my spirit guide; can you see it?"

David nodded. I would have thought that you'd figured it out already. Your dino gem brought part of it out to play.

"My super speed?"

David nodded. "It's a wild horse, your spirit guide is a mustang."

Conner gave him a weird look and then smirked. "And the fact that I drive a Ford Mustang is just coincidence."

"I think that deep down you've known it all along." David paused and looked at his son. "Your brother found his guide too; it's the wolf spirit. It manifested at the Powwow when he and Kailen went to pick a husky pup to adopt. His eyes glowed blue when it awakened and the puppy that was destined to be with them howled at him."

"What does all this mean?" Conner asked.

David shrugged. "Who knows? I guess it's something you'll just have to find out as you go."

Nothing more was said as the waitress walked out to their SUV with their tray of food. Both men enjoyed their food and ate in companionable silence. As they sat back, letting their food digest, Connor's cellphone went off and he pulled it out seeing a message from Kira.

He scrolled through it in silence before smiling and typing something back. When he put his phone away, he looked at his dad who was giving him an expectant look.

Kira and I were talking about baby furniture this morning, and she found a dresser she liked that's made of driftwood. It would fit the theme she wants perfectly. She found a shop that sells that kind of thing from natural resources."

David smiled as he wiped his mouth on the napkin. "So, where to?"

* * *

 **The Wares of the Earth** **Boutique**

The place was pretty much what Conner had been expecting. It was a smaller warehouse that had been converted to a nice earthy shop that was run by a couple of craftsmen enjoying their retirement. Their wives and children were involved in the shop too as was evidenced when father and son walked in and a young teenager greeted them.

"Hi, I'm Harmony, welcome to our warehouse! Is there anything specific you're looking for?"

Harmony looked to be about Autumn's age, give or a take a year or two. She had long brown hair that was pulled back in a clip and she wore distressed jeans and blue plaid shirt and work boots.

"Hi! I'm Connor and this is my father, David. We're here looking for some baby furniture. My wife texted me and said you might have some driftwood dressers in stock.

"Yep, we do. Come with me!"

She led them to the baby area where a mockup of a nursery stood with some homemade quilts hanging on the wall. "All of our furniture is made from recovered materials including trees that were already dead and wood that drifts in from the sea. No two pieces in here are alike."

Conner walked over to the dresser and knelt down, looking it over with careful attention. The piece was beautiful and had rounded corners and the drawers slid in and out smoothly. There were six drawers and a smooth top. The natural wood was the perfect shade and just looking at it, he could see it would be the perfect fit for what Kira had in mind.

Still, he pulled out his phone, snapped a picture of it and sent it to his wife. A minute passed and then she called him back.

He smiled when he saw her number and answered. "So, what do you think, Rockstar? It comes as a set with a crib and a rocking chair. Say the word and it's yours."

"I have no idea what I'm doing, but if you think it will fit with the theme, then get it. How's the quality of it?"

"I checked out the dresser, and it looks solid. Let me check the crib and the rocking chair."

He paused as she waited and inspected the crib and sat in the rocking chair. It was steady and handled his weight.

"Everything looks good and if it'll hold my weight, it'll handle yours no problem. This is handmade furniture and I think it'll look great in our little orca's room."

"Can you send me a shot of the set?"

Yeah, give me a second." He looked over at his dad and saw him already taking a picture of everything. After another minute, she spoke. "I like it. Go for it!"

Ok, it's yours." He smiled and added. "How's the online shopping going?"

"It's good, a little overwhelming. I'm not sure I'm in nesting mode, yet. I'm just looking into what we'll need."

"You do know you can shop for things you want too? It doesn't all have to be for our orca."

"Yeah, I know. I'm kind of looking into early maternity clothes too."

"You look like a goddess in anything you wear…don't hold back."

"Ok, Sweet talker. I'll let you get back to your day." He could hear the amusement in her voice and he shook his head.

"Ok, if you need anything more, let me know."

"Love you, Conner."

When he hung up, he saw the young teenager and an older adult waiting for him. David was watching him with a look of amusement on his face. "So, what's the verdict?"

"We're taking the set."

The older adult that stood next to Harmony was beaming. "I'm so happy to hear you say that. I'm Hank and I'm the one the built this set." He said as they shook hands. "I can promise it's top quality."

"I'm Conner; my wife, Kira said this is the set we want."

"Well, I'm pleased to hear that, but don't you want to at least know how much I'm selling it for?"

Conner looked at his dad and then at the older man. "Yeah, I'm prepared to pay whatever you want to charge."

The man gave him a look. "First time father?"

Conner couldn't keep the grin off his face. "Yeah. I am, but that doesn't mean that we're diving nose first into this. I have the money to pay for all this."

Hank nodded and then added. "Okay, then. Let's get you squared away."

* * *

When they had concluded business and had set up delivery for the next day, father and son walked out to the SUV and climbed in.

"You've been really quiet, Dad. Is something on your mind?"

David smiled and shook his head. "It's just a lot to take in. I missed a lot of years of the both of you growing up, hearing about you only through my brother and now that I have you both in my life, I'm watching you become a father yourself and buying baby furniture…it's just a lot to take in."

And then there's the fact that you have four kids now along with a daughter in law, grandson and another grandchild on the way…"

David smiled. "There's that too. All I can do at this point is hang on for the ride."

Conner nodded. "And what a ride it is. Don't forget that Christmas is coming up and we're taking that family vacation."

David grinned. "That's going to be great. I've already opened a credit card to Toys R Us. I've been waiting all this time to spoil some kids, we can rival Home Alone 2."

Conner laughed. "That's a lot of toys how are you planning to haul them all, rent a U-Haul truck?"

"If that's what it takes, I'm prepared to drop some change to make Christmas happen for everyone."

Conner shook his head and was about to say something else, but his phone interrupted them. It was Rosie, letting him know that Tris was ready to be picked up.

"Time to go pick up my furry granddaughter?" David asked with a grin.

"Yep, let's go get her!"

* * *

 **About an hour later**

Kira was in the kitchen when the front door opened; when she heard the sound of three doggy paws dancing around in the foyer, she smiled. She laughed when her furry daughter came bounding up to her woofing for joy at being home again.

When Conner walked into the room looking windblown and disheveled, she stood up and wrapped her arms around him. "Hey jock, did you have fun?"

Conner pressed a kiss to her lips. "Yep. Loads of fun."

* * *

 **So, what are your thoughts on this? Leave a review for me!**

 **See you next chapter!**


	4. It's a Domesticated Life!

**Hi everyone!**

 **Before we get into this next chapter, I'd like to address a PM that was sent to me by a guest. Back during 'The Glory Of Love', when the head of the TSA attacking the manor, Conner claimed that the legendary thunderbird was his spirit animal. And in the last chapter, Conner found out that it was the mustang that was his true spirit animal. I'd like to thank the anonymous guest for pointing it out. To answer the question, the mustang is the true animal spirit. When the thunderbird showed up, it did so because Connor had latent shaman power, but our dear Jock was inexperienced and didn't know how spirit guides worked and just assumed it was his spirit guide without really knowing what was going on. I most likely will address this later on in this story.**

 **However, for now, let's get on with the chapter. There's not really any warnings this time around, it's pretty much just a filler; mostly because for he first trimester, there's not a whole lot going on. I promise that the chapters will get much more interesting as Kira gets further along.**

 **I would also like to remind everyone that this story and the Miscreant's story are going along simultaneously. So if you are a little confused, it's because Conner and Kira are responding to events happening during the above story.**

 **I guess that's about it, so I'll let you get on with it.**

 **Enjoy and see you at the bottom!**

* * *

 _ **Angel Grove**_ ** _High School_**

" _Mr. True-Heart, you can go in now." The secretary said with a smile._

 _Conner got up from his seat and walked into Principle Matthews office, silently reminiscing about that day long ago that he walked into another principal's office for a whole different reason._

" _I know that look." Mathews said from his desk with a grin. "Were you a frequent flyer?"_

 _"Not as much as people would think. I was the big jock on campus and thought I could get away with anything, including being AWOL from class so I could practice my soccer moves. That day that I got busted, was the day my whole life changed."_

" _How so?"_

" _I met my wife that day and the rest was history."_

 _Matthews laughed at that. "It's got that whole Breakfast Club vibe, doesn't it."_

 _Conner shrugged and then sat down. "So, what am I in for?"_

 _Matthews accepted the change in subject. "I'm offering you a temporary job as a fill in for the assistant coach. He's on paternity leave and it would only be for a few months, but I wanted to have a set of eyes in the school that wasn't put there by the school board."_

" _Do you anticipate trouble?" Conner asked in a sober voice._

" _I don't know if this is just me being a pessimist, but whatever happened with those corrupt teachers being hired had to start somewhere. I want to make sure that all those changes that the school board boasted isn't just smoke and lights."_

 _"I know Kyle and Autumn's parents are pretty wary about sending them back to school. Me being around would help easy their minds." Conner paused and thought for a few minutes. "I need to discuss this with my wife."_

 _Principle Matthews nodded. "Take as much time as you need."_

* * *

 **A couple weeks later**

Kira looked down at her husband with a loving smile on her face. It was his first day as the assistant coach and it was time for him to wake up. Sitting on the side of the bed, she whispered in his ear. "Jock, you better get up if you want to get something to eat before school starts."

Conner smiled up at her and rolled over onto his back. "Not until I get my morning kiss, I don't know how I'll get through the day without you."

"Well, just because you asked so nicely." She answered leaning down to kiss him; really, she should have seen it coming. She gasped when he pulled her to his chest and then rolled over so she was on her back and he was grinning down at her.

"Feeling playful, are we?" Kira asked with a smirk.

"Yeah, I am; so sue me."

"Sadly, we have time for neither if you want to get some breakfast on the way to school."

Conner groaned as he realized that she was right. Sighing he rolled over onto his back as she kissed him again and he put a hand to her stomach…which was still flat.

"I know you're in there, little Orca." He paused and looked at his wife. "I can't wait till you start sporting that baby bump and we can hear the heartbeat."

Kira put her hand over his. "Just another month…but first. It's time to get ready for school."

Conner sighed. "Yeah, those are words I never thought I'd hear again."

Kira kissed him again. "Come on, Jock, I've already laid out your outfit."

"How long have you been up?" he asked as he rubbed his eyes.

"About an hour or so. I'm your wife, and it's my job to make sure my handsome husband is up and out the door on time."

He didn't argue as he got up and headed for the bathroom. When he came out, Kira was making their bed and looking very domesticated. He snuck up behind her, wrapped his arms around her and nuzzled her neck."

"Don't start what you can't finish. You don't have time for what you want to do." When Conner sighed deflated, she added. "I promise, tonight, I'll make this up to you."

Conner licked his lips and kissed her again. "I'll hold you to it, Kira."

"Don't think you're the only one going through withdrawals. Now, go get dressed."

"I could just skip breakfast if you need me."

Kira almost gave in, but she also realized that she would have to be the responsible adult right now. She turned around in his arms and kissed him sweetly. "My dear sweet husband, you need to get dressed and get going so you can pick up some breakfast. Those kids are counting on you to watch their back."

That snapped Conner out of his lusty haze, and he took a deep breath before letting it out. "Okay, no need to break out the heavy artillery. I'll go get dressed."

Minutes later, when he came out fully clothed, he saw Kira leaning against the door frame with his wallet, hat and keys in her hand.

"What are your plans for the day? He asked her.

"I thought I'd go to the mall and do some maternity shopping. She answered off handedly. "Who knows, I might even buy something frivolous."

Conner grinned and kissed her. "Sounds great, but please, take someone with you, lately trouble seems to just follow us around like a homing beacon."

Kira nodded and pulled him in for another kiss. "I will and before I make any major purchases, I'll text you."

"Or you can call me. I'm gonna miss hearing our voice."

"Or I could just text you; with how lovesick you are, calling you might become a distraction and that's not what you need right now."

Connor sighed in defeat. "Ok, Text me."

"It's a promise. Now get going, Jock."

He kissed her once more and then left the cottage.

* * *

When she was alone, Kira sighed to herself and then went about her morning activities. Within the hour, she was at the manor and looking to see if anyone wanted to go with her. Everyone was pretty busy, except it seemed, for Melanie who was sitting in the living room, watching some kind of soap opera with a glazed over look. She looked _really_ bored.

"Hey Mel, you look like you are about ready to fall asleep."

Melanie gave her a grin. "Yeah, I've already done everything I need to do. The high point of my day seems to be when Talia wakes up for a feeding. I've already done the laundry I had and there's no real chores left to do."

Kira smiled when she yawned. "Wanna go be mallrats with me?"

Mel looked up at her with a grin. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah, why not? We can go get some breakfast or whatever and then do some shopping. My treat."

Mel nodded. Oh, that sounds wonderful! I was seriously getting a case of cabin fever."

"Then let's grab the diaper bag and Talia and let's get out of here!"

Mel grinned again and was up the stairs in seconds.

It took about thirty minutes to get everything together and by then, Adam whose off day it was, had already pulled her silver Camaro around and as Melanie buckled her baby into the rear facing seat, Adam folded the baby stroller up and put it in the trunk of the car.

As Kira and Melanie got into the front, Adam leaned into the window. "The car is all gassed up, so you shouldn't need to go near a filling station today. It's important that the both of you avoid any kind of fumes. If either of you need anything, I'll be here all day."

"Thanks Adam." Kira said as she turned the car on. He stood back as they pulled away from the house and down the driveway.

Once they were on the main road, Melanie asked the important question. "So, what exactly are we shopping for today?"

"I wasn't kidding when I said we were going to be mallrats. I don't really have an agenda today; is there somewhere you want to go?"

"The pottery studio. I saw a video on Youtube about painting a plate and putting a babies' footprint on it; I think it would be a cool thing to do with Talia."

"That sounds awesome. Now, where should we go to eat?"

* * *

 **Angel Grove Mall**

 **Pottery Studio**

"There we go." Lydia said as she pulled the medium size plate away with the infant's foot prints on them. She was a college student and employee. This was apparently a common craft to do with infants and that made her an expert.

The plate was simply painted a pearly white and the little prints were done in a lavender color. The outer edge had been stamped with little purple flowers and under the footprints, Lydia wrote 'Talia' in pretty calligraphy letters. The piece was simple and elegant and would be ready to pick up in a week.

"What about you, Kira?" Melanie asked. "Did you want to paint anything?"

"It looks like fun, but I don't even know where to start, we don't even know what I'm having. Conner and I came here last Christmas and painted a castle bank, but that was a while ago."

"Well, go look around!" Melanie urged her with a grin. "We have time!"

Kira chuckled at her and got up and walked around the studio. She stopped in front of a sea turtle figurine. It was about a foot long and was well crafted.

Lydia walked up to her and smiled. "This is a bigger piece; it would look pretty in any room."

"That's the theme for our nursery; the ocean."

"Well, when you decide what you want, I can carry it to the table for you."

"No need. This is a very pretty piece, I'm going for it."

It took about a little bit, but when she was finished, the turtle looked very whimsical with its plethora of colors. "Huh, it came out better than I thought it would." Kira said as she put a small eye shine in the turtle's eyes.

"I think it would look perfect in the nursery, and it was painted by you." Melanie said with a grin. "Personal touches are everything."

Kira nodded as Lydia walked over to them. "Are we all done here?"

"Yeah, but I wanna take a picture so I can show my husband tonight."

As they were walking out, Kira looked at Melanie. "So, where next?"

I need to go find a place to feed Talia, I didn't have time to make one before we left.

Kira shrugged. "Yeah, do they have a space for you to do that?"

"Yeah, it's right next to the ladies room."

"Cool, let's go. We don't have anywhere to be."

* * *

As they walked towards that special mother's area, they heard someone's raised voice. So discraceful! You should not be showing off your assets in public! Have some courtesy for the rest of us!"

Kira's yellow ranger instincts kicked in and she walked swiftly towards the commotion. A young woman of Native American descent sat covered up on a bench; it was obvious what she was doing. She looked really upset and was biting her lip.

She offered no resistance as the lady continued yelling at her. "For shame! No one should have to see bare breasts out in public!

"Yeah, cause God forbid that we use our tatas for their intended purposes." Kira said as she leaned against the wall. The woman spun around with a look of shock on her face. "How dare you!"

Kira didn't back down as the woman turned to her. "But hey, as long as you there berating this woman for being so bare in public, feel free to march right over to Victoria Secret and yell at them for having nearly naked women on their walls. For shame! They should have some common courtesy for the rest of us!"

Melanie hid her smile behind her hand as Kira feigned shock at the prude. The woman looked fit to be tied and she looked like she wanted to slap Kira down, but the yellow warrior got into her face.

"I suggest that you get lost, Granny and leave us mothers in peace."

The woman huffed and walked away muttering to herself.

Kira turned back to the other woman. "Now that she's gone. You two should be left in peace." Then she sat down looking proud of herself.

"That was fantastic!" Melanie said laughing out loud. "I wish I had gotten that on my camera phone."

Kira shook her head and looked at the relieved mother. "Hey, you okay?"

She exhaled softly. "Yeah, I'm ok. I'd have gone to the nursing room, but my little girl is in the bathroom and I need to keep an eye on her."

As if summoned, the door opened with some difficulty and a little girl with long dark hair peeked out. "Mommy, I can't reach the sink."

Kira smiled at her. "Hey, I can help her out."

The mother looked relieved. "Yeah, if you don't mind. My son's not quite done yet."

Kira got up, and walked towards the little girl. "My name's Kira. Let's go wash your hands."

The little girl smiled up at her and allowed her to help, with hands clean and dried, they walked her back out to the waiting area. "Thanks, Miss Kira."

"No problem, Sweetie."

The mom smiled at her little girl. "All better, Little Faun?"

"Yep. Miss Kira's really nice too!"

The woman looked at Kira. "Thank you so much for helping out. Your friend Melanie was just telling me about you. Are you related to David True-heart?"

"Yeah, he's my father in law. I guess this world is smaller than I thought."

"Yeah, it is, at least for Angel Grove. I'm Briana White Tail."

I know that name. I bought an outfit from…"

"My grandma. She's one of the last of the women of our tribe that can make clothing the way our tribe used to back in the old days."

"I can't wait to see what she comes up with."

"So, how far along are you?"

Kira was surprised at how easy she felt about discussing herself in public. "I'm about a month and a half along. Right now, it's just a waiting game. Not much to do but nest a little bit and wait some more."

Brianna nodded. "If you have time, there's going to be a baby expo next month. My aunt, and grandmother and I are planning to be there. It's a good way to fill in some time while you're waiting for the first Trimester to end."

"Sure, I've never been to one, this is my first baby. When and where?"

Information was exchanged and they chatted some more. The little infant was burped, and they chatted till Little Fawn started getting antsy and they had to leave.

"I'll see you in a few weeks!" She said as he placed the baby back into the stroller and walked away with the little girl skipping beside her mother.

That was the cutest little girl ever." Melanie commented. "I hope Talia is that care-free."

"With parents like you? I don't have a single doubt."

"That was a super cool thing you did, standing up to that old lady."

Kira shrugged. "It's a natural response, I guess. I'll never stop playing the hero…not to mention that in about 9 months or less I'll be the one having fend off obnoxious prudes like her."

"Hey, speaking of your side-jobs, there's something I wanted to ask you."

"Looking for some war stories?" Kira asked with a smile.

"Yeah, if it's alright."

Kira shrugged. "Fire away."

"Well, I heard about this strange story where meteorite hit earth and everyone got alternate personalities. Did that really happen or was Ethan being metaphorical?"

Kira chuckled softly. "Yeah, he was being literal. A strange meteorite fell to Earth and anyone who came near it, had their dormant personalities switched up. Ethan became a gym enthusiast, Conner became an intellectual that liked to read non-fiction and I…well…became a prissy mall rat."

"You're kidding."

"Nope. It was pretty whack and not something I like to reminisce about. It's part of the reason I was resistant when it came to buy that formal dress for the Christmas dance last year and then again for the wedding."

"Well, I think if anything, what you did today proves that you're anything but a prissy mall rat. In fact, I have a feeling that you'll be that awesome bad ass mom that no one dares mess with. Not to mention that my daughter will have the coolest godmother ever."

Kira laughed. Yeah, that'll be me."

They were quiet for a few minutes before Melanie spoke up. "So, what's next on the agenda?"

Kira thought quietly for a moment and then looked up at her. "I meant to get Conner some more underthings and then I thought we'd check out that maternity store. I heard that right about this time is when I should start looking for that kind of stretch pants with a band on it and I'll probably end up starting a rewards account or something, I know I'll be shopping there for the next 9 months."

"I know what you're talking about. Have you even thought about what you want for your baby shower?"

"That seems such a long ways away." Kira commented.

Melanie laughed softly. "You'd be surprised at how fast it can creep up on you."

Yeah, I remember that." Kira commented. I wish we had put more thought into yours."

"Well, there was a lot going on then, with your own wedding and then all that crap happening with the klan. We did everything on the fly and it was last minute. I'm happy that we got all that help with baby stuff, but, it wasn't what I'd envisioned when I first saw that plus sign on the stick."

"Maybe the next time around we'll have more time to plan things out."

"If there is a next time." Melanie said softly.

Kira furrowed her brow. "Why do you say that?"

"I'm sorry that I brought down the mood," Melanie said looking like she wished to take back her statement. "But all this stuff about you guys getting your powers back, I worry that you'll be called back into the fight…what if I lose him?"

Kira couldn't deny that she had a valid point. "I have no easy answers for that. Evil never really goes away. I don't know if it will make you feel better, but there are a lot of ranger teams out there that never had to sacrifice their powers. If something should happen and we get thrown into battle, and I really hope that it doesn't, we'll at least be more prepared and have back up plans. Between all the teams that exist, at least in this timeline, we've got a lot of battle knowledge to rely on. It's not like we'd be fighting blind."

Melanie nodded as Talia burped. "Thank, that makes me feel better." She gently tucked her baby into the stroller and then smoothed her blouse again.

"So, should we get back to the retail therapy?"

Kira nodded. "Yeah, I think so. I guess we're heading to Abercrombie next."

* * *

 **Later in the afternoon**

Conner walked in the door of the manor to see everyone gathered around the table.

"Hey everyone. Did I miss the party?"

Kira turned towards him. "Hey Jock, how was school?"

"It was pretty good; it's gonna take some time to get used to being on a schedule again. Up till now, we've pretty much just been going with the flow."

Kira wrapped her arms around her husband and he kissed her lips tenderly.

"So, how did the day trip to the mall go?"

"We painted some pottery, did some shopping and I replaced some of your underthings and I bought some maternity clothes."

"Oh no, you don't." Tanya said with a grin, "Don't gloss over the best part!"

Kira ducked her head.

"What happened Rockstar?"

When Melanie filled him in, he grinned down at his wife. "I'd expect no less from you. I'm a lucky, lucky, man. Just promise me that you don't need a lawyer or bail money."

"Nope, I wouldn't dare. Bail money would really put a dent in our baby fund."

Conner chuckled and kissed her forehead. "Good to know, now, if we're done, I'd love to see what you bought. Tell me you splurged just a little bit."

"Not as much as I planned, but I did want to discuss possibly getting an aquarium for the nursery."

"Huh, I didn't expect that, but it makes sense. How about we go to the cottage and do some research on it."

And with those words, the both of them left the manor and went home…with Tris hobbling behind them.

* * *

 **So, there ya go. Just another day at the mall...along with some fun moments. Who else loves a badass Kira?**

 **Feel free to show this story some love by hitting that review button!**

 **See you all next chapter!**


	5. Relative Revelations!

**Hi everyone! I hope everyone that celebrated 4th of July enjoyed themselves and still have all their fingers and toes! (LOL)**

 **I'm back with another chapter for this story. This story along with My Kimberly/My Tommy and Miscreants are woven together so if you haven't read My Kimberly/My Tommy, you might be lost while reading this chapter.**

 **A reviewer asked me where Diesel and Annabeth have been all this time: This chapter explains everything.**

 **This chapter comes with a trigger warning for those who have suffered an assault of any kind; tread carefully.**

 **This is a heavy chapter, so strap in tight and read on.**

* * *

 **A couple of days after the fall fest…**

 **Morning**

 **The Cottage**

Conner drew lazy circles over Kira's bare back. She curled up against him feeling really, really relaxed. She'd woken up craving him and he'd happily offered himself up to her. She'd taken control and made love to him with her body and he encouraged her in every possible way. In the back of his mind he once again remembered how scared she was after he'd rescued her from her parent's house. She'd been so wounded by Roger's words and afraid to do anything even slightly naughty.

But this morning, her moans and gasps were so alluring that he had a difficult time holding back his own pleasure. He was so tightly wound, that by the time she threw back her head and called out his name, he couldn't have prevented himself from following over the edge if he'd had the endurance of ten men.

Now, they lay in bed, both completely sated and happy…

"I like the name Dylan." She said softly.

That snapped Conner out of his daze. He focused on his wife. "What was that?"

Kira looked up at him. "I like the name Dylan if we're having a boy. I looked it up and it means 'born of the ocean' or 'son of the sea.' I think it's fitting."

Conner smirked. "You mean you don't want to name him William?"

Kira sat up in her full glory. "Not funny, Jock. I know it's got the orca spirit, but that's going too far."

Conner's eyes were fixed on her chest…he licked his lips.

Kira narrowed her eyes and pulled the sheet up to her chest. "Eyes up here, Conner."

Conner slid his eyes up to meet her and smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, you're just so sexy and I'm a red-blooded man."

Kira snorted and shook her head. "Yeah, I can see that." Getting out of bed, she hastily threw on her discarded tank top and sleep shorts. When she got back on the bed she laughed at her husband's pout.

"I love the idea that you're drunk on me, but I really want to know your opinion."

"You're wearing too many clothes…"

Kira rolled her eyes at her husband. "I meant about what we're going to name our baby."

Connor laughed at her. "I'm sorry, but I have no filter when it comes to you. I can't help myself."

"God, you're cute." Kira said with a huff. "I guess we can discuss names later, I'm just going to go take a shower and get cleaned up."

Conner perked up, "Mind if I join you?"

"I guess so, it's the only way to get it out of your system!"

* * *

 **Late Morning**

The good mood that had enveloped them both dissipated the moment they set foot in the manor's kitchen. Everyone was there and none of the Space Teens looked happy. Eric, who sat in one of the chairs, held his sniffling son close to his chest.

"Dad, they can't just fire you! You're a war hero!" Titania was protesting. Rowan, who was at her side, rubbed her shoulders comfortingly.

Ashley grimaced. "I know this is freaking you guys out, but your father and I and Zane, and Karone discussed this kind of possibility when we took that trip to Marina's Cove. We planned for every thing including banishment and or firing."

"But Dad, this means we can't go home anymore!" Elara cried as she started to tear up.

Ryder held his sister close to him, he looked worried, but he was doing his best to hide it.

"No, we can't go home _for now_." Zane said; trying to sound hopeful. "That doesn't mean forever."

"Yes, I'm a war hero." Andros said as Ashley held his hand. We all are, but that doesn't mean crap to someone like Senator Yareth. He's incapacitated by fear of what could happen should they send that convoy to Earth to open relations. I had a feeling that it was a long shot to begin with, but I had to try."

"This is why I pushed for the early wedding." Rowan said. "Your father thought that this might happen. If we'd waited to get married before leaving, that senator might have compelled me to come home like he's doing to Iris. I bound myself to your family so that I wouldn't be forced to leave you."

"You knew this would happen?" Titania asked her husband incredulously.

"Please don't be mad." Rowan replied calmly. "When I first asked your father for permission, we talked for a long time and he was upfront about everything. Even knowing that this could all blow up; I chose to be with you. Where you go, I go. That's all there is to it."

"Excuse me, what's going on here?" Kira asked having heard everything.

Andros sighed. "I've been fired from my job as ambassador. It's not as big a deal as my daughter thinks it is. Iris has also been compelled to return to the Home World. The rest of us are banished. We try to return, we'll be put under house arrest."

"What the hell?" Conner asked. "You guys have done nothing wrong! Can they get away with that?"

"The government we established after the war is still in it's infancy." Zane replied. "It's only been at work for about 14 years, if even that. Laws are still being established and politicians are still jockeying for position and influence. Our statuses as war heroes will only get us so far when there are still old families from the days before the war that have a say in the government. It's a very complicated topic but that's the easy version of it."

Andros looked at the kids. "I know it seems scary and uncertain, but we have everything under control here."

"Not to mention that you kids have your lessons to get to" Ashley said brightly. "And when the Miscreants get home, I'm sure you'll have an exciting movie to enjoy and tomorrow, the kids will start decorating for Halloween! There's a lot to look forward to!"

Recognizing the tone of dismissal, the Space Teens got up and slowly cleared the room.

When the teens were gone, Andros turned to Iris. You better go get your things together and say your goodbyes. The space transport will be entering Earth's atmosphere in an hour. I'm to drive you to NASADA in about 20 minutes to be picked up."

Iris nodded and walked towards Eric and Kailen.

While they were speaking quietly and somberly, Tommy pulled Conner and Kira towards the living room.

"This is a hell of a time to bring this up, but your father is on his way here to visit; we're going to have a nice little conversation."

"That sounds really ominous…is everything okay?" Conner asked with a little trepidation in his voice.

Tommy took a deep breath and shook his head. "Sorry, I'm still trying to shake off the mood from earlier. It's not a bad thing at all, it's something good…happy. I just don't want to say anything more until Iris leaves. I'm giving them some time. Little Kailen isn't handling the separation very well."

They sat in silence in the living room and then Tommy got up, walked over the cabinet with the DVDs in it. He scanned the collection and pulled out a thin case. He walked over to the DVD player and popped in the disc.

When he walked back to the recliner and sat down, he tossed the case to Conner to look at.

 _"_ _League of Warriors?_ What does this have anything to do with anything?"

"During the 90's, it was a live action TV show... like the WWE. It was a martial arts competition that was huge back when I was your age. When we passed the powers to the next team, we didn't have much to do other than working at the Dojo. TV became a thing and we watched every episode in this very living room. What is on the disc is the final bout that was held at the Warrior Arena. We attended the event live and saw all this go down. But this DVD gives the whole experience. The highlights are in there and there's an even better view of the walkout and the bout itself."

When Eric gets in here, we're going to watch it. Then when David gets here, we'll explain everything."

* * *

About 30 minutes later, Eric walked in with a clingly sniffling 3 year old in his arms. "What's going on in here?"

Tommy briefly gave him the same speech he'd given Conner and Kira. Picking up the remote, he queued up the DVD menu and hit the play button.

They watched the highlight reel and then the final bout. Conner and Eric sat forward as the entourage for the Iron Buffalo appeared.

"Wait, what's Dad doing there?" Eric said as the camera panned to a younger version of their father.

"Your dad was part of the entourage; he was a big part of the team."

"I was more than that." David said as he walked into the room. "I was the entourage and his backup."

"Can we cut to the chase?" Connor said. "What's the big secret?"

"You have a grandfather." David answered. "Diesel's him."

"Are you kidding?" Eric asked as he held up the DVD case. "That's him?"

David grinned and nodded. "Yep. It's not that much of a surprise. Where do you think we learned our skills from?"

"Once we got to know each other better, he began to train both of us together. I was already a skilled fighter before I met him, but your grandfather trained brought my skill level even higher and by the time that you guys became rangers, I had a lot more moves in my arsenal and I was that much more of an effective ranger."

"That does explain a lot." Conner replied with a sense of wonder. "But where was he during the whole fiasco with the TSA?"

"That's a big story; it's why I came here today. I'm going to explain everything and answer any questions you have. Full disclosure."

When he'd sat down on the couch, he took a deep breath.

"You guys know the story about what happened with your mother. Racism separated us then and left me heartbroken. I drank a lot back then and it took Tommy intervening before I got clean and sober. We didn't realize that we'd stumbled onto the beginnings of the TSA. It was just a small group back then, but by the time everything went down, it was too late to nip it in the bud. Back then, Dad and Mom came and went freely and because I'd moved off the reservation, I wasn't pegged as a threat.

On the day it happened, one of the men from the TSA followed them home. The next day he showed up with his goon squad and did his best to intimidate Dad into staying away from Angel Grove. Dad, of course, is not easily frightened off and he told them where to 'shove it'

They left, but came back in the dead of night and set fire to several of the houses. The tribe's elder was in one of those houses; he was already in poor health and on oxygen. The tank exploded and killed him instantly. Several of the youth, one of them being your aunt, Little Sparrow tried to fend off the attack were gunned down. They were rushed off to the ER but the oldest teenager was DOA.

After that, Dad made the decision to ban anyone from the tribe from going to the city. No one questioned him on that, not to mention everyone was in mourning for their losses."

"Mom is a free spirit; she loves her home and being with Dad, but she gets cabin fever easily. On the day it happened, she went out to the pharmacy because the special anxiety medicine that Sparrow takes was out and the pharmacy told her she would need to come get it herself or wait for the next shipment to come in. Xanax is a controlled substance and being the mother, she had to sign for it."

"Our best guess was that she was spotted by someone who recognized her as being married to Dad." Tommy added. "She'd almost made it home when she realized she was being followed by someone in a tuck with a lift kit and huge tires. Mom is an excellent rider and she did everything she could to lose the truck, but they caught up to her in no time. They waited till she hit the highway and then forced her into a ditch. One of them tried to... r...take advantage of the situation... but she put up a fight…so they crushed her legs instead and left her for dead."

"Mom is such a badass; she had enough grit to crawl out of the ditch and flag down help. An off duty EMT found her and was able to get her help. She survived but was in critical condition for a while and in the end, they had to amputate her legs at the knees. She's got prosthetic legs, and now uses a manual wheelchair. If she were younger, she could bounce back with a year of physical therapy, but she's in her early 60's. So, she might be relying on that chair for the rest of her life."

"Wow, that's a lot to absorb." Eric said finally speaking up. "Not only do we have grandparents, but we also have an aunt also?"

"Two of them." David amended. "Dad had a brief affair before he met Annabeth. He has a daughter from that relationship named Corrine. She doesn't come around often since her mother, Vixen moved them after the league ended. They still talk, but I don't know if she'll show up when mom and dad come to visit."

Tommy looked at Conner. "As for your question; the night you saw the thunderbird in the sky, that was your grandfather. He's the shaman of the tribe; when he got the warning from the spirts, he mustered everything he had, gathered the strongest of the tribe, including your father and they went into the wilderness. They performed a war dance and your grandfather used everything he had to summon the Thunderbird to help us."

"The reason he hasn't come around is because he's the acting leader of the tribe until someone new is chosen. He's been busy rebuilding the reservation as well as and taking care of his wife and daughter; the whole tribe was affected by those attacks. At the same time, he's working on rebuilding their house so that it's accessible to Annabeth's needs."

"So, she can't come visit us because we don't have those accommodations either." Kira finished.

Tommy nodded. "At least not yet; the ban's been lifted, but this house was not built to be accessible to wheelchairs. Before they can come, we need to build a ramp which will come in handy with Katsume's girlfriend possibly coming to stay."

Conner looked at his father. "So, what else does she need?"

"Besides the ramp, we're thinking we might make bring in another prefab house like we did with yours only this time, it'll be fully ADA compliant. As for the manor, the work on the ramp starts as soon as possible. We've also ordered a couple of those stair lifts so that she'll have access to all areas."

Conner looked at Kira as if asking permission. She smiled at him. "I'll be fine, Jock. If you manly men want to get started today, I'll be fine."

Conner looked at his wife and kissed her forehead. "I don't deserve you."

* * *

 **Later that night**

By the time they got back to the manor, the guys were exhausted and feeling very manly. David had gone back home, and Kira was relaxing in the manor living room with Kim and the other girls.

Conner stood in doorway of the kids room as Eric put his son to bed. They spoke in their own language as he pulled the covers up for his son. He kissed his boy's forehead and then stood back up, straightening his shirt.

When he walked out, Conner looked at him expectantly. "Are you really going to be okay?"

Eric blew out a breath and nodded. "Yeah, there's a lot there. It's been a while since we just talked; we've both been so busy with our families."

Connor nodded. "So, you ready to spill?"

"Yeah, but not here, there's too many little ears present."

Connor nodded. "How about the dojo?"

"That works for me."

* * *

 **The Dojo**

"So, what's in your head?" Connor asked when they were both seated on the mats.

"I'm not upset that she's gone; she knew this might happen."

"That's not what I expected. I thought you had a thing for each other."

"Iris is not one to really form attachments. Sure, we had sex a few times and the experience was amazing with a partner who knew what she was doing. But she was really only there to help me set up a good diet for my son and to help me understand how his telekinesis powers work. That was all she was there for."

Erick huffed sheepishly. "At one time I thought I was in love, but not anymore. After my wolf spirit manifested, something big changed in me. Wolves mate for life, and she's not meant for me. Had she been recalled before that happen, the separation would have been worse for me, but now…" Eric trailed off as he searched for the right words. "The only pain I feel is for Kailen, he was attached her and now she's gone; It's going to take a while for him to snap out of the funk. I'm hoping that all the excitement coming with the holiday season will distract him so he can get over all this."

Conner nodded. "I remember how excited Kayla got during last years Halloween. She insisted that we dress like pirates."

"Kailen's never been trick-or-treating before. There was a party at the academy, but it wouldn't have been much fun for my son. We didn't even go."

"Then that's what we should do this year." Conner said, happy that the melancholy moment was over. "I'm not sure what neighborhoods are the best to go to."

"Then we'll all go as a group. I'm sure there's got to be a pumpkin patch around here and maybe a hay ride with apple cider drinks for him to try out."

Eric nodded, grinning at the idea. "You're going to be an awesome Dad. You already rock with this whole uncle thing."

"The same could be said about you. You're rocking this whole dad thing. You're going to be an epic uncle."

We will see. But for now, I'm ready to get some sleep. This whole day has been emotional, and I'm worn out."

"Not a problem. I'll see you in the morning."

Conner walked out of the dojo to see the lights on in the cottage and Tris sitting on the porch with Tris at her side. She smiled up at him as he walked up the ramp and into the house. Taking off his shoes, he walked into the house and out through the side door where Kira sat on the porch swing.

He greeted her with a kiss and she immediately pulled her legs up, snuggling up next to him.

I'm sorry about this morning beautiful. I know you wanted to discuss something important, and I was just too sexed up to pay attention."

Kira chuckled. Glad to know I have that effect on you."

"What did you want to discuss?"

Kira smiled up at him. "Just some names for our little orca. We have plenty of time for that, if you're too tired to discuss it right now."

Conner squeezed her hand that was in his own. "What did you have in mind?"

* * *

 **So, there you have it, the backstory about Diesel and Annabeth. Also things are changing for the Space Teens. I didn't want to go into what that was all about in this chapter, but it'll be explained soon.**

 **I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and that it was all you hoped it would be. Please leave a review if you feel so inclined!**

 **See ya next time!**


	6. Meeting the Grandparents!

**Yep! I'm back again! I'm going to keep the ball rolling as much as I can though I might need a break after all these chapters. In the meantime, I'll keep going and bringing you more chapters.** This chapter comes with a profanity warning and a reminder that this series is AU. I'm takin Andros' backstory a little differently and messing with some ranger lore.

 **Anyway,** **t** here's a lot in this chapter so strap in and take your time. I'll see you at the bottom.

* * *

 **The Manor**

 **The Dining Room**

Conner, Kira and Eric sitting around the table on with their laptops open and sharing a pizza between them.

These young adults were going ahead with their plan to give Kailen the best Halloween ever and were scouring their area of California for any pumpkin patches and kid friendly events. The trip to the costume shop was already a given, and with the Miscreants, more fun could be had.

"Hey, look at this one." Conner said as he turned the lap top around. "Spooky Acres Orchard and pumpkin patch. They're having their annual kid friendly harvest festival all this month. It's open from 5 to 9pm Friday through Monday, but their mom and pop country store is open everyday."

Eric looked up and typed in the web address and brought up the page. He scrolled down it and smiled. "They've got a petting zoo, face painting, a spooky hayride, kid friendly haunted house… and the price is reasonable." 10 bucks per kid and 15 per adult. For all that you get for the night, I'd happily pay for the tickets.

"I've heard of that place." Rocky said as he walked through the door. "They have the best apple orchard around; I'd love to get a bushel from them."

Conner clicked on the side bar and smiled. "They'll let people pick from the orchard for 20 bucks and you can take everything you can fit in the basket.

Rocky grinned at the idea. "I'm all for it, I might just accompany you for that part of the trip. I've always wanted to see if there was a difference between the farm fresh and what I get from the…" he trailed off as Trent stormed through the house and out the front door.

The four of them looked up as Trent hopped in his car and burned rubber out of the driveway.

"What the Hell is going on?" Conner asked as he pulled out his cellphone, hit Trent's number and then put it on speaker phone.

Trent didn't answer for a few seconds and then finally he answered.

Trent here.

"What's going on? You peeled out of here like a bat out of Hell!"

"That fucking bastard is making his move. Tommy and Kim think they're being stalked."

"Do you need us to join you?"

"No, Tommy and Kim are already there at the Flea market and thrift store. I'm going to end this right now."

"Just don't do anything stupid, we need you alive."

"Duh, Conner, I'm not going to kill him, but I'm going to end this threat to my son's life. I don't murder people, but I'm going to make him wish he was never born."

"Keep us in the loop." Kira ordered. "Whatever you need, we've got your back."

"Will do. Trent out."

The call ended and Conner looked up. "So, I'm guessing we may have to move plans up sooner than we thought."

"I know that tone of voice." Kira commented. "I haven't heard it since Trent was under the power of the white dino gem."

"It's the voice of an angry father; he's ready to open up Hell on this guy."

* * *

 **About an hour later**

Trent came back even angrier than when he'd left. He. Was. Seething. His teammates were there with their computers in front of them, ready to help him however they could.

"What happened, Trent?" Kira asked as he sat down at the table.

"The donut muncher has a whore helping him out. She showed up with that vile piece of shit teacher Hatche to attack Katsume. She spewed out all kinds of lies for everyone to hear and she humiliated him. The police were called, and they were carted away to jail, but I won't be satisfied until I make sure there's no possible way he can hurt any kids ever again."

"We're with you, Trent." Conner said as he sat down at his own laptop. "What do you need?"

"Yeah, what's your game plan?" Ethan asked.

"Three plane tickets out of state. I need to get Katsume and his girlfriend to safety. She stayed with him the whole time and now she's part of this, I wouldn't put it past that bastard to use her to get to him."

"Ok, three first class plane tickets, what else do you need?" Conner answered as he typed in the request.

"A hotel in Portland, that's where I'm taking them. We'll regroup there and decide what we're going to do."

"Got it, what else?"

"Make sure that at least one of those rooms are accessible for Elisa. Tomorrow, when we've all had sleep, I'll need to reserve a vehicle to get us around the city."

"An accessible van?" Kira asked.

Trent nodded. "Yeah, if you can find one. Now I need to call Gabriella, let her know that Katsume won't be returning to school."

"Good idea, but then you need to go pack, we'll take care of the escape."

"Yeah, as soon as I call my dad and let him know I'll be using that expense account again."

"One thing at a time, Trent." Kira calmly reminded him. "Let's just work on getting you out of California first."

"Yeah, do that. I'm going to get packed."

It felt really good to be working as a team again. By the time Trent came back downstairs, the teenagers had come back and had hurried to pack their own bags.

That's when their next challenge presented itself. Meeting the grandparents.

* * *

 **~The living room~**

Conner and Kira stood in the arch way watching everything. The scene was adorable.

"You can come closer, Kailen. I won't bite." Diesel said with a welcoming smile. I'm your grandpa."

Eric smiled down at his son. "It's okay, buddy. We've got this."

Kailen looked up at his dad nervously and asked a question in their alien dialect and Eric shook his head. "Use English, buddy. Your grandpa doesn't understand what you're saying. He just wants to say hi."

Kailen took a deep breath and walked hand in hand towards Diesel. Next to him walked Spirit. The husky pup was almost as big as Kailen now and the boy held his collar as he walked to the big scary guy that was beckoning him.

"Hello, Grandpa." Kailen said mustering up all his courage.

"Hi, Kailen. Your grandpa David told me all about you."

"He did?" Kailen said looking nervous.

Diesel nodded. "He told me that you really like drums, like the ones my friends were playing at the Pow Wow."

Kailen looked up at his dad and Eric nodded at him encouragingly. "I'm going to be with you guys both now and when we all leave for SeaWorld. Maybe I can have them come over for a day…let you play with them?"

That brought a grin to the little boy's face. "Really?"

The beaming grandfather nodded. "Yep. I'm the acting chief of the tribe till they find a replacement for me."

Eric breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that his son was more relaxed in the old warrior's presence.

As they talked, he heard a sudden commotion at the door.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Rocky walk towards the door with Andros behind him.

In a muted voice, he heard the words 'FBI' and someone asking for Ambassador Andros. After some quiet conversation, Zane walked up behind and offered to go with them to straighten things out.

When they left Andros was shaking his head and saying something in his native language that Eric only understood parts of.

Eric gave a last look at his son who was pre-occupied and then walked into the kitchen.

"What's going on?" he asked. Conner and Kira had followed just behind him to the kitchen and were giving the former ambassador an amused look.

Andros looked up at him. "You remember when I told you I found a way to get that specialized equipment for you and Kailen?"

Eric nodded.

"Well, after getting fired from my diplomatic position, I had to find another way to get what we needed; I called up an old friend of mine. Her name is Carina and she's a smuggler. We were very close at the academy and she was the yellow ranger from my old team, a couple of years before I met Ashley. It's a long story for another day, but through some mutual friends, she was able to smuggle the equipment off KO-35 and get it here."

"Those men were FBI agents and they came for help because she's literally holding officers from AGPD bay with her powers along with her son AJ. They attempted to arrest for her for driving a car that was not road worthy and because she was speeding. She's really got no respect for authority."

She went all crazy on them when they tased her son. Zhane is handling things, but now I need to have a long talk with my kids. They're about to learn that they have a stepbrother they've never met."

"AJ's yours?" Conner asked.

Andros nodded. "I wasn't always this stoic. Back in the days before the war, I was pretty rowdy, though Carina had me beat by a mile at the time. We were the newest Ranger Team and fresh out of the academy when we were handed our biggest loss. We were only patrolling the outer area of the planet when our ship was taken out by the alliance of evil. Out of the 6 people on our team, only three of us survived. Zhane, myself and Carina. We crammed ourselves into the only escape pod that wasn't damaged and flew back home to a ruined planet. It was our first time seeing a decimated planet and the horror was too much for us. Her parents were killed in the initial attack and she came to me for comfort."

"We realized that there was no hope for us and while Zhane was checking on his parents who'd been hospitalized and Dad was busy trying to muster up a resistance, Carina and I treated that night like it was our last night on our planet. We had all kinds of fatty food and we both took in copious amounts of _Pharamonius_ _Seductionous_ and well…I think you can figure out what happened once we lost all our inhibitions."

Connor nodded. "Yeah, I think I can figure that out. Your son is proof of that."

Andros nodded. "That's the shortened version of what happened. All these years later, my past is coming back to me and they're bringing the special equipment with them."

"What special equipment would this be?" Kira asked.

"It's a pair of gauntlets that would give me telekinetic abilities like my son's. I wanted to be able to practice with Kailen in the mornings, and with this tech, I'll be able to do that."

Along with the gauntlets, I asked for translating gear to help bridge the gap with your grandparents. When I first came to earth, I had a hard time assimilating with the Terrans, I wish I'd had this kind of equipment back then. Kailen has really come along way in such a short time, this will just make the process easier."

"Cool!"

Andros nodded. "And now if you'll excuse me, I need to go break the news to my kids."

* * *

 **Later That Night**

 **The Kitchen**

With the kids in their bunkbeds for the night, the adults, mainly Conner, Kira, Eric, Diesel and Annabeth, could finally talk freely. They all sat at the dinner table with their various drinks and snacking on the left-over pizza and breadsticks from earlier that night. Rocky and Aisha had brought it home with them after returning from the airport.

"Kailen is a special boy, isn't he? He's not quite human." Diesel observed quietly.

Eric shook his head. "He's human…but with enhancements." When Diesel nodded in understanding, he continued. "People, like Andros and his kids are from a human space colony called KO-35. They're humanoid but have telekinetic powers and they all live in an advanced society. My son is part me and part them.

The woman who birthed him was the daughter of a scientist on another of their colonies. In trying to create a designer baby; she seduced me, thinking I was Connor and I slept with her. I didn't see her for almost three years after that and then she suddenly shows up with my son and was really pissed off at me for lying to her and pretending to be my twin. I guess she hoped that by sleeping with a power ranger, she'd get a baby with advanced powers…in Connor's case, super speed."

"I don't like to speak of this around Kailen, because of his complex; He was a broken little boy when she dropped him off, he was scared that I would abandon him because of his freakishness and wore himself out trying to be the perfect little boy. Kayla's done a wonderful job helping him to come out of his shell and he's loosened up a little bit more, especially when we went to Poseidon's Cove and then again when went to the Pow Wow.

"David mentioned that when I asked him how I could break the ice with Kailen."

Eric nodded. "He was just _mesmerized_ by the drums, and I had to work harder at keeping him with me. He kept stopping to watch the dancers and the drummers. If we could have stayed the entire day watching them, he'd been perfectly happy to do so."

Diesel grinned at that. "He's going to be a good drummer one day. I wasn't kidding when I said I could bring some drummers around for a day to play with him. My tribe has been working hard to rebuild the houses after the attacks, a day to let loose and play around would be welcomed."

Eric smiled. "Then you have full license to spoil him. I really want him to have as much fun as he can handle."

"And what about you?" Annabeth asked. "Don't you get to have fun too?"

Eric deflated. "Honestly, I haven't thought about myself in the past couple of years. Sudden fatherhood really makes you grow up fast. All I've focused on was my training and providing for Kailen."

"Then we need to start there." Conner answered. "We're going to let loose and ride every ride, eat all we want." Then he pasued and looked at his wife. "Sorry, Rockstar…"

Kira tussled his hair. "Hey, I'm perfectly fine with you going crazy with your twin and the others. I made the choice to get pregnant. Once this baby is born, we can go back and have all the fun we want."

Conner couldn't resist stealing a kiss from his wife. "You're too good to me."

Annabeth then turned her attention to Kira. "It's no so bad having to sit out. I'm not much of a fan of roller coasters, we could just sit and talk and pig out on sweets and ice creams…and do lots of shopping!"

Kira grinned. "I could do with more shopping! Conner and I are doing an ocean theme for the nursery, going to SeaWorld is the perfect opportunity to find the right décor."

Diesel sighed dramatically; my poor credit card is going to need CPR by the time your done with it!"

Annabeth gave her husband 'the look' and then answered. "Right, and you're not planning to spoil all our grand kids rotten with plushies and Halloween candy."

Diesel busted out laughing. "Yes, Dear. I stand corrected."

Conner laughed and shook his head but said nothing.

"So, do you have any idea where we're you're going to take them this week?" Connor asked once he caught his breath.

"Haven't thought that far ahead. From that look on your face, I have a feeling you've been thinking it over."

Eric nodded. "Before everything happened today, we were looking around for some fun activites for Kailen to enjoy. He's never celebrated Halloween before or even worn a costume or gone begging for treats. I wanted to find something that he could enjoy before the big night. We found something and only just started searching for lodging nearby. I guess with everything that's happened, we'll need to go ahead cement those plans early."

* * *

 **The Next Morning**

 **The Kitchen**

A very sleepy Conner and Kira walked into the manor with their furry daughter by their side. The kitchen was full of wonderful smells, all of them breakfast related with Rocky at the stove and in his element. There were more people in the room than he expected. David, Shawnee, Raine, were there along with baby River who was happily playing in his car seat.

At the center of it all was Diesel who was being chattered at by both Kayla and Raine while Belle sat by her master's feet and Spirit sat by Kailen who was sneaking little pieces of sausages to him.

Athena and Apollo had officially taken over the yard and were busy running around the yard with Junior. Mama was sitting on the porch contentedly watching all the action. Beside her was her food bowl which was already half empty.

Suddenly Belle sat up on her hind legs and let out a loud barrooo!

Kayla looked down at her puppy. "What is it Belle?"

A minute later, Zhane and Andros walked into the room, the former looking weary and the latter with a face of irritation. In his hand was a case that was definitely not made from Earth materials.

Eric looked up them as they walked in. "Good Morning! Is everything okay?"

Andros nodded but Zhane said something in his native language that had Eric raising his brows and he answered back in a tone that made Zhane apologize, at least that's what Diesel assumed from the quick reply. All this was in a language that was impossible to understand.

Andros sighed and sat down at the end of the table, which was the only place that was clear of breakfast plates. "Don't ask me to translate what he just said. It was a rough night at the police station; those overzealous cops have watched Men in Black way too many times. If Carina and her son were scared to come here the first time, they're terrified now."

"Wait, they're scared to come to our planet?" Diesel asked.

Andros nodded. "Yeah, in Terran terms, Earth is one of the most dangerous places in the galaxy to visit. The other aliens think we're crazy to be staying here. Coming to Earth is about as dangerous for them as it would be for a bleeding human to jump into water infested by great white sharks. They're scared of you. Carina has always been the gutsy fearless space smuggler. Coming here was the bravest thing she's ever done, but after last night, neither her nor her son will be willingly showing up here again. From now on, should I need anything, I'll have to go out to orbit to meet up with her."

"All for us?" Eric asked.

Andros nodded. "For sake of our friendship and she has a soft spot for needy children."

"What's in the case then?" Diesel asked.

Andros opened up the case and inside were a set of high-tech looking gauntlets and a few other gadgets that reminded everyone of a Bluetooth.

Eric got up and walked over to the case and held out his hands as Andros put the gauntlets on both forearms and then tapped a button on the side. There was a soft buzzing and Eric flinched just a little bit and then looked up at Andros. "What was that?"

Andros wasn't the least bit worried looking. "It's scanning your brainwaves and neurological system so that it'll know who much power to put out." Another moment passed and then a quiet beep sounded, and Andros nodded. Okay, now you should be able to use the gauntlets.

The power to move objects is already in you since your species and mine are not so different, these gauntlets are designed to help you harness what you've already got. It's similar to the morphers that my teammates used, but without the connection to the morphing grid."

"How do I harness it?" Eric asked as he looked at his arms.

Andros smirked. "Be a Jedi. Those movies are actually pretty accurate, as far as harnessing powers of telekinesis. You're going to do the same." Saying this, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a plastic expandable ball and used his power to make it expand to the size of a beach ball. "Focus on this ball and I'm going to pass it to you. I'll go slowly this first time."

As everyone watched Andros made the ball float over to Eric who held out his hand. "Tell me when you have it."

A moment passed and then Eric nodded. "I have it."

Andros lowered his hands and laughed when the ball was still floating between the gauntlets.

"I think you've got it. Now send it back to me."

When Eric did as he asked. Kailen spoke up. "Next me! I want to play!"

Andros passed it back to Eric who then slowly passed it to his son. Kailen laughed infectiously and then so did Eric.

"That's really something!" Diesel commented. "I never thought I'd see something like that, not in my life time!"

Andros nodded. "I could have done more, if I hadn't been fired from my position."

"And what are those things?" Annabeth asked pointing to the earpieces.

"These are universal translators. I ordered these for you guys. Kailen has been speaking Kerovian his entire life. He's done really good learning English which is one of the most difficult earth languages to learn. But learning an alien dialect is just as challenging. I wanted to help bridge the gap between you guys, so I ordered these for you guys."

"These will allow us to understand any language?" Annabeth asked as Zhane took out the earpieces and handed them to the grandparents.

"Eventually. These are only calibrated for English and Kerovian. The more languages you come in contact with the more language options will be added. Rocky could probably help you add Spanish to the library, and so on. When I was ambassador, these came in handy when I visited all the different worlds I had to visit."

Diesel nodded. "Okay, so how do I use it?"

"Simple, you put it in your ear like you would a Bluetooth. Once it's switched on, I'll say something in my language, and you should hear it in English."

"Once they both put the tech in, Andros spoke a common phrase and Diesel grinned widely. "I understand you!"

While Kailen and their grandpa spoke, Kayla sat in her seat, looking worried. _Did this mean that she was going to lose her place as Grandpa's favorite?_

As if sensing her mood, Annabeth smiled and gathered her granddaughter into her lap. "I know that look, my little Princess. Your grandpa and I both have plenty of love to give. We just one more grandson to share it with. Now, why don't you guys get cleaned up, we're going to get your costumes today!

Diesel looked over at Kayla. "You're grandma's right. Now that we're here, the fun begins!"

Instantly, the worry melted away and excitement replaced it. Eric smiled at his son and then at Kayla. "You guys better go get cleaned up and dressed. We're going to have so much fun today!"

Kayla grinned and ran out of the room with Belle following on her short legs. A second later, Eric picked up his little boy and put him on his hip. "That goes for us too. You get your first costume today! You ready for this?"

Kailen grinned and nodded. "I wanna find the perfect one!"

Well then, we better get dressed too! He kissed his little boy's cheek and then looked over at Andros. "I really owe you for this. Thanks for everything!"

When they were gone, Diesel sighed happily and then looked at Andros who was helping David calibrate his own.

"These are wonderful. I feel like I connected already!"

"My pleasure, but for the time being, we need to keep this technology to ourselves." Andros cautioned. "These were illegally imported according to the Kerovian Government. No one can know that you have this tech."

"Are things really that bad on your home world?" David asked.

Andros nodded. "Yeah, my superiors believed that opening trade with Earth is a bad idea. They were willing to strip me of my title and then ban me from ever returning to make sure that doesn't' happen. Earth is my home planet now."

"That's pretty severe." Annabeth commented.

"Maybe, but I don't really care anymore." Andros replied. "I spent all these years living under their microscope, having to be someone I'm not. Now that they fired me, I have all the freedom in the world."

"So, what are you planning to do with all this freedom?" Shawnee asked.

I'm teaching my kids all about earth customs; Halloween is the first one on the list."

Conner grinned at Kira. "I think it's time to resurrect the HMS Tyrro-Rex from it's watery depths!"

Kira laughed at his words. "Hoist the sails and fly the flag!

David laughed "Drink up me hearties Yo ho!"

* * *

 **Whew! There was a lot in this chapter! I'm going to need a break after this chapter! LOL! So, feel free to leave some constructive criticism. I know there's not a lot of Conner and Kira romance here, but I promise to make up for soon. I know there's not a lot of pregnancy stuff happening in this part of the story, but really nothing huge happens until the second trimester.**

 **Anyway, I guess that's it for this chapter! See you next chapter!**


	7. Weekend with Grandpa Part 1

**Welcome back to the series! I want to thank everyone for being so patient with me while I took some time for myself. This chapter took a little bit as I was struggling with how to go about this interaction between Kayla and Jude not to mention that it's been a couple years since I got to have fun in a costume shop. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter and the cuteness that comes with it.**

 **This chapter comes with a slight profanity warning though the moment is brief and it's a really cute moment. (I'm sure somewhere in the multiverse, Tommy is cursing at me for pairing his daughter with the child of his high school rival!) I've grown to love little Jude and I hope you guys will soon if you haven't already. He's such a cutie!**

 **For those who are wondering about how their parents grew into friends, I'll be addressing that soon, most likely in the coming chapters of My Kimberly, My Tommy. In this chapter there's a brief nod to 'The Crow' (Another of my favorite movies. If you haven't watched it, you totally should!)**

 **I guess that's about it for this AN. Read on and see me at the bottom.**

* * *

 **(Continued from the last chapter)**

 **The Manor Kitchen**

"Just an FYI, my daughter and her husband will be joining in on the fun." Diesel said as Conner headed for the fridge.

He looked up. "Really? That's awesome. I can't wait to meet them!"

"Why didn't they show up when you did?" Kira asked.

"They were on their honeymoon. They had their marriage ceremony after the traditional mourning period. Once I lifted the ban, they went on a road trip for their honeymoon. When Tommy called us in, they were just arriving, so I took a few minutes to check in with them before we loaded up."

"Little Sparrow and Draven got held up." Annabeth said as she wheeled herself into the room. "They'll be meeting up with us at the resturant."

"Draven is a strange name." Conner commented as he put some waffles on Kira's plate. "I was expecting something more…"

"Native?" Annabeth answered with a smirk.

Conner shrugged.

"His native name is Raven, but after losing Wolf-Eyes, he was ready to go full on 'Crow' and avenge the tribe." Diesel answered. "He's an excellent fighter and probably could do it, but letting hatred takeover would have changed him into something he's not. If that had happened, I would have refused to let the bonding ceremony go on."

"What did you do?" asked Conner as he plated his own breakfast.

Diesel gave them both a long look and then exhaled. "Because you are family, I'll tell you, but it's got to be kept a secret for now."

Kira nodded. "You can trust us, I mean, we had to keep our identities a secret for over a year."

"True enough," Diesel answered. "Though you won't have to keep it that long. The League of Warriors is making a comeback to the airwaves."

Conner grinned. "Cool, are you going back to the ring too?"

Diesel huffed. "I wouldn't mind that, but no. My time in the spotlight is over with. A few years ago, before the TSA hit, my old fling, Vixen, told me about an online petition started by some super fans to have the show picked back up. They've got some financial backing now and the new producers started asking around to see if any of the old warriors wanted to come back to the show. I was an original fighter but I'm too old to enter the ring. I'll be there with a few others to give the show our blessing during the opening ceremony, but it's Draven who will be entering the ring as my protégé. They were hoping that Corrine or Sparrow would do it, but neither of them are fighters. Draven is a talented fighter, so, when he went through his grieving phase, signing him up for the show was the best choice."

"Dad and I worked him hard and by the time the medical people came by to give him a physical, he was in top form and had a clear head." David continued. "After Halloween, Dad is supposed to start leaking the news to the fan community."

"Though I'm not in the ring, the fans will want to hear the news from me." Diesel stated. "My throne is being shined and restored to its glory in the workshop and soon the hype will start. The media team is already designing the website and creating official merchandise for the whole show."

"The premier takes place just after the new year." Diesel said with an amused shake of his head. "I didn't think my fanbase would still be here after all this time, but it is. These next couple of weeks really need to count because after Halloween, the hype is starting up again."

"The other part of the hype thing is that a news reporter will be doing a piece on all the former warriors that will be attending the opening ceremonies." Diesel continued after a few moments of silence. "They'll ask about my family and that includes you guys and even my great grand kid. I would love to have you all included, but it's up to you guys. If you guys want to opt out, that's not a problem and it won't hurt my feelings."

"Showbiz can be a _bitch."_ Annabeth finished with a concerned frown. "You should think long and hard about it before you make the decision."

* * *

 **About 30 minutes later**

 **The driveway**

Eric tightened the safety belt that secured his son's car seat to the back seat of the extended cab. On the other side, Diesel did the same with Kayla's booster seat. She was just about old enough to graduate out of it, maybe another few months and she'd be sitting in the seat with the rest of the big kids.

Eric stepped down from the truck to see Kailin standing there waiting for him.

"Hey Buddy, you ready to get going?"

Kailin didn't answer but held out his arms so that his dad could lift him into the truck's cab.

Eric held him close and whispered something in their native language and for the first time, Diesel understood what was being said.

" _Hey, buddy, what's wrong?"_

" _I'm scared. Kayla said there were monsters in the store…with knives and claws…she said they were fake, but what if they're not?"_

Eric kissed his son's forehead. _"Hey, I've had a few Halloweens myself. There's nothing in that store that would hurt you. But if there was, I'd protect you from it."_ Eric paused and looked at Diesel. _And don't forget that your great grandpa is a warrior, he can beat down any monster that comes after you."_

Diesel grinned at the pair. "You bet I will. Now, as soon as everyone's here, we can get going. We've got lots of shopping to do today."

It took a few minutes for Annabeth to come down the ramp in her chair and when she got the truck, Diesel was right there to pick her up, bridal style, out of her chair and lift her into the front seat. As soon as his grandson and his wife showed up, they could be on their way.

Conner was once again behind the wheel of the Mustang and Kira sat in the passenger seat. It had been a while since it was just the two of them in the car, and that was what had taken them so long to come out of the garage.

Seeing the pretty red sports car, Kira was taken back to that day not so long ago in the Angel Grove Highschool Parking lot when she'd made out with her fiancé in the front seat. Even though it had been done in order to avoid suspicion, it had been hot and more than once, she'd thought about her promise to fulfill his fantasy.

 _Hmmm. That sexy corset was still in the Victoria Secret's bag. Maybe she should bring it out soon._ _If she wanted to make it happen for him before their orca was born, it would have to be soon, it would be hard to make love to him in that position if her belly was in the way._

That thought alone caused her hormones to roar to life and she'd pressed Conner against the side of car and kissed him hotly. He'd groaned softly and gently gripped her hips, surrendering himself to her kiss... if only for a few minutes before he broke the kiss... sweetly reminding her that as much as he really wanted to continue down that path, their family was waiting for them.

She blushed and nodded, and Conner smiled and pressed another kiss to her forehead before opening her door.

Yeah, she'd find a way to get him alone and make that fantasy come true…though it couldn't happen in the garage. She was taking her OBGYN's orders to heart, she'd never do anything that would put their orca's life in danger.

 _But soon…_

* * *

 **Hollow Tree Costume Shop**

As the group walked through the spider webbed windows, it was as if they entered into another world. Kailen held tight to his daddy's hand and looked all around him. The music was soft and the lights sparkled all around him.

"See, Buddy, it's not so scary is it?" Eric said as he led his child between a lighted spooky tree. "We're just going to look around and all the fun stuff and we'll find the perfect costume to wear."

Suddenly a banshee scream could be heard from somewhere in the back and a frightened Kailen clung to his father's leg. Eric sighed and picked his son up and held him close.

"Shhh, buddy. It's okay. There's nothing to be afraid of."

"Welcome to the forest, little ones!' Said an older woman in a bright costume. She was old enough to be a grandma and to Eric's eyes, looked like the spooky version of the fairy godmother from that Cinderella film. Her hair was a silvery color and braided to the side. Her crinkly face had plenty of laugh lines and she wore a witchy looking apron with her name tag on it. She paused as she saw the group…especially the little boy shaking in his father's arms.

"Oh dearie, dearie, me! Do we have a first timer here?"

Eric carded his son's hair. "Yeah, this is Kailen and it's his first Halloween. He heard the screams and got scared."

The woman's face softened as she walked up to Eric. "Oh Little One, there's nothing to be scared of. I'm Marian and this is my forest."

Kailen looked at her though he partially hid his face in his dad's chest. "Hi."

The lady held out her hand and Kailen hid his face again.

Eric sighed. "I'm sorry, he's not used to spooky stuff; he's only three. We've never celebrated Halloween before."

Oh dear, I see how spooky this place can be to a little one." Marian said with a frown. A second later, her gaze brightened up as she reached into her striped apron and pulled out a medallion that was glowing a bright green and purple "How about you hold on to this magic pendant and I'll go silence the scary stuff. When I get back, I can assist all of you in finding the perfect costumes!"

"It didn't take long for the spooky sounds to be turned off, and when there was only silence, Kialen exhaled softly and rested his head on his dad's shoulder.

"There now, no more scary sounds." Marian said as she walked back to them. A moment later, she noticed Kayla and Raine smiling up at her. "Oh my stars and moons! I didn't see you there. Do forgive me for ignoring you!"

"It's ok, we're not scared by the stuff in here." Kayla said with a smile.

"Yes, the bravery I can see in you is amazing! Still, would you girls like a pendant also?"

"Yes, Ma'am!" Kayla said with a grin. "Thank you!"

When the girls put on the medallions, the woman stood up straight. "Now, what can I help you find?"

* * *

While Kailen was being helped, Kayla began to wander from the toddler section to the older kid's section. She wasn't sure what she wanted to be this year. She'd tried on her old ninja costume and it was a little too short in the legs and she didn't want to be a pink ninja anymore. She needed to wear green this year!

In the far back of the kid's section she saw something familiar hanging around the clearance bin. Biting her lip in a familiar way, she walked towards it and saw it was a replica of her father's dragon dagger...

"Raaaaaa!" Someone yelled from the darkness. Kayla jumped and fell back against the rack as an evil clown stalked towards her. She growled softly as her eyes started to glow. Just as the clown was upon her, a little boy ran towards her and shoved the clown away with all the strength of a 6 and a half year old possessed.

"You leave Kayla alone!"

The clown laughed evilly and pulled off his mask. "Hey, Shrimpy, chill out it was just a joke!"

Kayla looked over at the little boy and realized that Jude Skullovitch was standing there in a protective stance. Her little heart skipped a beat and she couldn't help the smile.

"I don't see her laughing, Asshole!"

"What did you think would happen in a Halloween shop?" The clown said with a frown.

"We're here to buy costumes, you Mass-ajo-nist prick! Kayla said, stumbling over the big word. "Not to beat up stupid clowns!"

"Hey, what's all the shouting about?" Conner said as he came over. he looked over at the clown on the floor.

"That mean clown ran at me, but Jude saved me!" Kayla answered with a grin at her friend.

"It was just a joke. I didn't even touch them!"

"And that's the only reason I'm not kicking you out of the shop!" Said a younger woman wearing an employee nametag. Behind her, was Ariel Skullovitch, Jude's mother.

"Beat it, Bozo," Ariel said. "This circus is over."

The bully rolled his eyes but got up and slunk away.

With the little bit of drama over, Conner looked over at a really cute scene. Jude and Kayla were both looking at the prop dagger and they were both smiling as Jude played with the buttons.

Conner raised his eyebrows as Kayla held up the dagger and demonstrated how to use it. She looked so natural as she did so that he just had to take snapshot of it with his camera phone.

"My goodness, they are so cute together." Diesel commented as he showed up.

"That they do." Ariel said as she looked over at the kids. "He's been different ever since the festival. He talks about her all the time."

When she looked over at Diesel she did a double take. "Wow, I didn't know you were here." She looked just a little star struck.

Conner grinned. "Ariel, this is my grandfather Diesel True-heart." He looked at Diesel. "Grandpa, this is Ariel Skullovitch, Jude's mother. Jude's the little boy who ran over to do battle with the evil clown and to defend your grand daughter's life."

Diesel looked over the little boy and called forth his shaman sight. He raised his eyebrows for a moment and then looked over at the mother.

"Kimberly told me about you guys and how close the kids have gotten. She mentioned the possibility of having a play date for them."

"I think they'd like that. Other than at school, they haven't spent any time together. We've only just moved back to Angel Grove a few months ago."

"Well, we've got till the end of the week before we take a family trip. We're going to Spooky Acres this Saturday. Would you like to join us?"

Ariel nodded. "I need to talk to Eugene and make sure we have the gas for the trip. It's a little far for us."

Diesel nodded his head. "We have a hummer limo that we use for big trips like this. There's enough room in there for everybody and it'll be my treat since your son rescued my granddaughter from that evil clown."

Ariel chuckled. "I'd like that, but I still need to check with Skull, we were thinking of going this year since Jude is old enough now to enjoy the festivities."

* * *

While all this was going on, Kira had separated from the group to walk back to the adult section. She'd gotten an idea as she'd seen some of the more innocent costumes. She'd known that Leg Avenue existed but had never really given the sexy costumes much thought, but now as she looked at the more revealing costumes, she smirked. If she was going to fulfill her husband's fantasy, she may as well make it over the top. She paused as she saw the perfect costume and took it off the wall and examined it… and then she smiled. This would send Conner over the edge…and it came with a short skirt. She grinned bigger as she looked back up at the rack…

 _Now to find the right size._

* * *

After exchanging numbers, Ariel smiled tenderly at her son and then looked at the men. "You should know that there is something special between them. He's been dressing up...differently from his usual play clothes when he knows we're going somewhere. He told me it 'was just in case he ran into Kayla again.' This morning, he asked to borrow a dab of Skull's cologne."

Connor looked over at the duo and couldn't stop his smile. Little Jude was wearing a black crew neck t-shirt with a black jean vest over it. The vest had silver studs on each shoulder. He wore black jeans that were held up with a silver studded belt...and his hair was styled in a black mohawk. His shoes looked pretty new also.

"Some kids start early. He's a cute kid." Diesel was saying.

"We knew Kimberly and Tommy both in the day, Kayla is the image of her mother."

Conner looked between them and then shook his head. "Are we just going to look over the fact that Kayla may have just said her first curse word in public?"

Ariel sighed ruefully. "So did Jude; I can't claim to be surprised. Though Skull and I do our best to curb profanity in front of the kids, Skull slips up sometimes, especially when he's in the garage and dealing with a customer over the phone. He tries so hard to be polite, but we've found that customer service is best left up to me and not him."

Diesel nodded. "I'll need to have a talk with my granddaughter about using bad language. But in the meantime, we need to get back to the others. My great grandson needs me."

Ariel nodded at the men. "Jude and I need to get back to our Mother/Son day out. I'll call you when I know something."

Kayla looked at Jude and gave him a big smile. "Thanks for helping me!"

Jude blushed and shrugged. "It's okay. You're really pretty." Then he walked away with his hands shoved in his pockets.

Kayla was smiling too; as she turned her head, she was grinning just like Kimberly did.

 _By the Great Power, she definitely looked like her mother!_ Kira silently observed from her spot a few feet away from her husband.

"Young Lady, where did hear those words from?" Diesel asked in a serious voice as he regarded his granddaughter.

Kayla shrugged innocently. "From Mommy. That was she called that creepy guy at the car fixing place before she grabbed his privates and made him scream." She paused and gave her grandpa a look. "What's a Mas…soja…nist?"

Diesel and Conner looked at each other not sure what to say; thankfully Kira was there to intervene. "That's a big word, little Ninja. It's what we girls call boys who treat us like we're stupid. But that's not important right now. We should get back to shopping, did you see anything you like?"

Kayla nodded and held out the dagger to Kira. "It looks just like Daddy's!" She whispered.

"Well then, you should have one too. Let's put it in the shopping basket then, right?"

"Can we take a picture and send it to him?"

Kira nodded and pulled out her cellphone. Kira posed with the dagger and smiled at the camera.

Kira snapped the picture and then sent it to Tommy's phone with a brief text and then put the phone back in her purse.

"So, you ready to get back to action?"

Kayla nodded and then walked over to the racks and the two resumed the search for the perfect costume.

* * *

Around the time that they were in line at the register Kira's phone buzzed.

~ _ **First my hoodie, then my color and now a copy of my dagger. Did you buy her the whole suit and shield?~**_

Kira laughed and answered. ~ _No, she's going to be a magic green dragon fairy this year.~_

 ** _~Fantastic.~_**

Conner was looking over her shoulder and he laughed at the texts. "I almost feel sorry for him."

"You should." Kira said gently rubbing her stomach, "That could be us in a few short years."

Conner grinned and pecked her lips. "We can handle anything."

Kira laughed and kissed him back. "Famous last words, Jock."

Diesel laughed as he put away his wallet. "I can't wait to see how your kid turns out."

Conner had bought a few extra pieces for his pirate costume, and that's what he paid for as another employee bearing a mischievous smile silently slipped another bag to Kira. She'd already paid for the sexy costume, and that's what was in the bag.

Annabeth smirked at the exchange and gave Kira a raised eyebrow. And Kira winked back at her.

 _Now to find a way to get Connor alone in their car…_

* * *

 **So, how cute was that? I just love chapters like this one! What does everyone think of this chapter? I'd love to know what you guys think!**

 **See you guys next chapter!**


	8. Weekend with Grandpa Part 2

**Welcome back! I'm sorry that everything took so long, but this unexpected break was needed. Anyway, here's the next chapter and I hope you all like it.**

 **I also hope that everyone had a happy and safe Halloween along with a good Dia de Los Muertos! May we always take time to lovingly remember those we have lost and keep them alive in our hearts.**

 **This chapter was a bit daunting for me because I had to dredge up a few sad memories to draw from for part of this chapter, you'll understand when you read this. Having to relive some of my darker moments set me back and I was in a mood for a few days before I was able to stow the sad memories in the back of my mind. It was worth it for this chapter.**

 **This chapter comes with a couple warnings that you guys should be aware of. There's a warning for foul language and mention of violence towards a woman. There's also a citrus warning at the very end.**

* * *

 **Delinquents Bar and Grill**

It was Midday when they arrived at the restaurant. This restaurant had been in business a few years and it boasted the best steaks in town. It was a family friendly restaurant, but it didn't have the bright happy colors that most family restaurants did, but the space was clean, and the heavenly smells made all who enter salivate.

As they entered the riveted metal doors, they walked into the most bad ass looking interior ever. The walls were light grey, and the floors was reclaimed wood that looked like it had been there forever. The place was illuminated by simple track lighting and all the tables were gleaming black. On the walls were movie posters of the most awesome anti-hero movies to ever hit the big screen. This included the first Hell Boy movie along with The Crow, and even the most recent addition, Ghost Rider. Chains hung from the walls like garland and a few Halloween decorations were added to add to the atmosphere.

Thank goodness, they were nowhere near as scary as the ones at the Halloween shop.

"Welcome to Delinquents." Said a young man in a black t-shirt. "How many are in your party?" He looked to be about 22 and had long black hair with orange and red highlights that was held back in a man bun. His face was welcoming, but he looked like he could also be a troublemaker too…like a delinquent…

"Hey there, Warren." Diesel said with a grin. "It's been a while. There are ten adults, and three kids."

Warren gave him an answering grin. "Not a problem. We've got our big table open in the back." He eyed Kailen. "Will you need a highchair or booster seat for the little dude?"

Eric smiled at his son that he carried on his hip. "A booster seat will work. He's not going to be leaving my side today."

"Gotcha." He smiled and looked down at Kayla. "Oh my god, I haven't seen you since you were a baby. How long has it been?"

"I'm seven now. We just moved back to Angel Grove."

Warren nodded. "Wow, you're a big kid now! Do you still want to use a booster seat?"

Kayla shook her head. "I think I'm good without."

Warren nodded. "Ok, but if you change your mind, just ask."

Conner grinned, loving the easy feeling of this place. A few seconds later, they were being led to the back of the restaurant where a huge round table sat waiting for them. The ebony paint gleamed in the glow of the overhead lights.

The restaurant wasn't too packed. A few people were at the bar and a biker couple were at a table close by having a quick lunch, but all in all, things were quiet. Warren waited patiently as they all sat down and then handed over the sanitized booster seat so that Kailen could sit next to his father.

When everyone was seated, Warren handed over the laminated menus and pulled a notebook out of his apron pocket.

"So, what are we drinking today?"

Diesel looked over the menu and then looked up questioningly at their waiter. "What happened to the kiddie menus? I thought they were such a big hit?"

Warren sighed. "We thought so too, but one night we got a customer complaint by this high society…woman. She raised enough fuss that we finally had to get rid of them."

"Gee, that sounds familiar." Conner said with a look at his wife. "We had the same kind of woman shut down the mock battle of the bands at the high school. The parents and students were all for it and we really thought it would happen. I wouldn't be surprised if it was the same lady."

"I was hoping after the…bad guys were taken out, that this town would get better. There's still such bad vibes hanging over us."

"It's because there's still bad guys around here." Kayla said matter of factly. "That's why Mommy and Daddy had to leave the city."

Warren looked at her and then at Diesel. "Damn, really? Why do I get the feeling that we only saw the tip of the iceberg?"

Diesel sighed heavily and looked at Annabeth. "It's because you didn't see the rest of the iceberg, but this isn't the place to discuss such things like that. Not out in public anyway."

"Diesel True-Heart, it's been a while." Said a new voice as another man stepped up to the table. "How ya been?"

The former warrior looked up to see 'Hades' his former opponent in the ring. He was a tall and powerful looking man with slicked back hair and deep blue eyes. He wore an apron over his black polo shirt and it only took one look at his thick biceps to know that he never slacked off in the gym.

"Johnny, how's business?"

"It's good, but I could see those massive storm clouds hanging over your head from across the restaurant."

Diesel sighed softly. "I refuse to speak of such storm clouds with my grandkids in earshot."

"Step into my office." Johnny said a moment later. "You know better than to stress eat; you'll enjoy the food better when you've taken that load off your shoulders."

"Go on, Dear." Annabeth said with a smile. "I'll hold down the fort here."

When Diesel turned back to his former rival, he saw a dark look on his face. "This part of that iceberg?"

Diesel shook his head. "I'm not saying anymore with my grandchildren in earshot. Kaila picks up on way more than you'd think."

When they were back in the business office, Hades closed the door and leaned against his desk. "So, what the fuck is going on…and why is Annabeth in a chair?"

"It's all a part of that iceberg."

He didn't go into a lot of detail, but by the time he was finished, Hades was frowning. "And Tommy and Kimberly are on protection detail?"

Diesel nodded. "A young man's safety is at stake and his foster dad felt it best to clear out of California."

"I can keep an eye out for this guy. Do you have a picture of him?"

Diesel nodded and pulled up the picture on his phone.

"Sonofabitch." Hades swore. "This pig was here yesterday!"

Diesel's eyes narrowed. "Are you serious?"

Hades nodded his head slowly and met the man's gaze. "I wouldn't joke about this. He went after Lydia yesterday…copped a feel on her. When she reacted, he raised a hand to her. Thankfully, Emily was there to stop him. He called her something absolutely disgusting and when I threw his ass out and he accused me of assaulting a police officer. I asked to see his badge and before he could pull it out, his phone went off.

He answered it and then called someone a 'bitch' and stormed off, talking about 'taking care of shit himself.' I wanted to call the cops, but I don't trust them either, especially not after what you just told me about Kyle."

Diesel took his tirade in stride. "I can't blame you, but there are a few cops that are after this guy. Officer Tesla is the new head of the police department. He's personally working this case."

Hades looked down at the picture and then took a snapshot of it on his own phone. "I'll start passing this picture around and I'll put in a call to this Tesla, I'm assuming you have his business card?"

Diesel nodded. "Be careful who you let in on this. Paladin's already been through the wringer and he's safe for the moment; the last thing we want is for this pig to get the drop on them. He drove this boy to attempt suicide, if he gets near him again. This pig might just do the job himself."

Hades nodded solemnly and put his phone in his back pocket.

"I've got your back, Diesel. Go and enjoy lunch with your family."

* * *

Back at the table, Conner had his arm around Kira and was grinning at Kayla as she talked with Raine who sat next to her. The Little Ninja hadn't stopped chattering since they sat down. He'd looked at her with his shaman eyes and saw how bright and sunny her soul was. Compared to earlier, she was positively shimmering!

A moment later, he frowned seeing his little sister's spirit that wasn't as happy and bright. Though Raine smiled at her cousin as she babbled on about what she should wear to the playdate, Connor could see that his little sister's spirit wasn't as happy and bright as it should be. He 'scanned' her with his shaman's gaze and saw that over her heart was the faintest fracture and the aura (for lack of a better word) was dimmer than he thought it should be.

Something was definitely up with the little girl and he felt the need to find out what it was. This was supposed to be a day of fun and whatever had dimmed her shine needed to be dealt with immediately.

In that same moment, Kira got up, whispering to him about needing to use the bathroom. Though he hated that his wife was in such discomfort, he was also grateful at the opportunity that this opened up to have a moment with his little sister.

"Hey Raine?"

The little girl looked up at him in question.

"I'm getting a little full trying to finish off these mozzarella sticks; wanna help me out?"

Raine grinned at him and nodded and he motioned for her to come over to his side of the table. She slid into Kira's seat and Connor picked up a few sticks and put them on the little plate in front of her.

As she munched on the tastey appetizer, he considered how to phrase the question. "So, what did you decide to get for your costume?"

"I got a forest fairy costume. Mom even let me get the little antlers and the head band for me to go with it!"

Her spirit brightened a bit and then dimmed again. Connor paused and decided to take a different approach. "Are you planning to wear it to the pumpkin patch this week?"

Her aura got even darker and she frowned a little bit. "I probably shouldn't; I don't want to get pumpkin guts on it."

"So, I'm guessing its flannel shirts and jeans this weekend?"

When Raine shrugged, Conner decided to get down to brass tacks.

"You know, Eric and I didn't get to have fun days like this growing up. We didn't get to spend time with our grandparents and go costume shopping and pumpkin carving."

When Raine gave him a confused look, he added. "I can see that you're not having the maximum amount of fun that you should be having." He paused and pointed to his head. "My shaman eyes pick up a lot and you've got one _gnarly_ cloud hanging over you. I don't want you to miss out on all the fun because of something…or someone dragging you down."

Raine sighed and leaned against her big brother.

"My best friend doesn't want to be friends with me anymore." She said softly.

Conner nodded and put an arm around her shoulders. Leaning down he asked. "Which friend is this? Is she a friend from your school?"

"She was." Raine said softly. "Angela told me during recess that Heidi wouldn't let her join her club because she's friends with me. Angela told me to stay away from her forever and she even pushed me off the swing set last Friday. And now Kayla's got a new friend and I don't want to be left all alone!"

"Wow, that sucks." Conner said as he hugged her close.

Raine nodded and then started to tear up. Before Conner knew it, she was crying softly into his t-shirt and he was holding her closer to him and rubbing her back soothingly.

When the moment was over, he handed her a napkin and she dried her eyes with it. When she looked up at him, he grinned down at her. "I'm sorry that you had to deal with jerks like Angela. But if she was so willing to end your friendship, then she wasn't a good friend to begin with. Now that you're not friends with Angela anymore, there's room to make better friends."

"You think so?" Raine asked looking up at him again.

Conner grinned at her. "You betcha. I met my best friends in detention. Now I'm married to one of them and my other best friend made me the godfather to Thalia. When Trent came along, we had another friend to add to our group and together, we kicked evil's butt."

Riane giggled at him. "You did?"

We sure did." Kira said as she got back to the table and sat down next to Kayla. "We worked together and won and sent evil's butt back to the stone-age."

Raine giggled and leaned into Conner as she ate another mozzarella stick.

"And speaking of working together," Conner added. "We're going to need help carving those pumpkins. Kira and I haven't carved one before and I heard about that monster Jack-O-Lantern you carved last year. You can hang out with us at the pumpkin patch this weekend and teach us all about pumpkin guts."

"You gotta wear an apron or the guts get everywhere!"

As Raine talked on, Connor looked up at Kira and basked in the beaming smile she was giving him. He mouthed an 'I love you' at her and she returned it.

It didn't take long for the mood at the table to lighten up a bit. Kira soon found herself talking with Kayla about her need to suddenly go shopping for her 'date.'

"You don't want to just check your closet for something appropriate to wear? Things are going to get pretty messy this weekend. "

A moment later, she was on the receiving end of Kayla's patented puppy eyes and trembling bottom lip. "Please Kira? This is a special occasion."

Kira looked across the table to see Conner trying too hard to hide his smirk behind the menu he was holding up. When she looked back at Kayla, she knew there was no other way out of this. She sighed heavily. "Okay, but first, we need to call your mom and make sure she's okay with this."

Kayla nodded and then frowned. "We better not tell Daddy about this. He'll get mad that I'm going on a date with a boy."

Kira gave her a long look. "This thing we're going on this weekend. It's not a real date. It's just a play date." When Kayla gave her a look of confusion, she elaborated. "A real date is just two people taking off to be alone for a while…like when Conner and I left a couple of months ago. He knew I needed some time alone with him, so we had a very long extended date. This thing at the pumpkin patch is a play date…or rather a time set up to be with Jude and his family so we can get to know them better. We're going to carve some pumpkins, go on a hayride and drink apple cider and stuff. No matter what though, we're going to have fun!"

Kayla nodded and then added in a pleading voice: "But I still want to look nice for Jude, I really want to go shopping for a play date outfit! Please Kira?"

Kira nodded and then looked over at Connor who was still smirking. "I meant what I said before, Little Ninja. I don't think your mom will object, but I should still call her just to let her know what's going on. But if she's okay with it, I'll take you to the mall and we'll get our nails done and get you a play outfit that's going to be perfect for you."

From across the table, David was frowning at the conversation. He'd seen all these years how close Tommy was with his baby girl; they were like two peas in a pod and now she was afraid to tell her dad about her liking a boy. He really hoped this soul fusion thing wouldn't cause a fissure in their bond. As soon as he had a moment, he needed to call his brother and have a talk with him.

* * *

 **The Cottage**

Conner and Kira sat on couch in their living room and opened up their laptop. They'd texted back and forth after their luncheon and now that Kayla was asleep with the other kids, they had a chance to have a talk with Tommy and Kim.

When they got the text from Kimberly that they were able to talk, Kira clicked on the Skype icon and sent the call through.

Moments later, Kim and Tommy showed up on their computer screen.

"Hey guys, what's up?" Kimberly asked. "We heard that our baby girl had a busy day."

Kira nodded. "Yep, she did. We were at the costume store and she was attacked by an evil clown. Then just like a knight from a story book, Jude charged into the fray and saved Kayla. We didn't even know the Skullovitches were there till he showed up to defend her from evil."

Tommy snorted and shook his head. "And now you have a playdate set up. My father already told us about the pumpkin patch thing this weekend."

Connor nodded. "I saw the whole thing go down with Bozo but your daughter and Jude were facing him together. She called the clown a 'Misogynist prick'."

Kimberly snorted and covered her mouth to hide it. Tommy's eyebrows raised dramatically. "She did? Where did she hear that insult?"

"Not from us." Connor said. "But before you get mad, there's more to the story. Jude also said his first cusswords today. They've both crossed that line now…I spoke to Ariel and she told me that he most likely heard his dad talking to an 'ass hole' on the phone and that's where he learned those words, so maybe one of you guys slipped up and called someone a prick."

At that Tommy turned to Kimberly and raised an eyebrow at her. "We're going to have a talk about that later. I think I know where our daughter picked up that word."

"Before you do that, there's more to the story." Conner added. When he had the parents' attention, he continued. "As I said before, I had a talk with Ariel and she told me that her son's demeanor had started to change…not in a bad way, but in a different way. Ever since that day at school where Kayla was attacked by that bully, he's been putting more care into his looks. Like when he knows they're going out in to public…he puts on his better clothes, 'just in case, they run into Kayla again.' This morning, he asked to borrow some of his daddy's cologne."

Kimberly chuckled softly. "Awe! He's so adorable!"

Kira nodded. "And Kayla seems to feel the same way. When we were at lunch today, she asked me to take her shopping so she can get a cute outfit to wear at the pumpkin patch…because Jude's going to be there."

Tommy groaned at this and Kimberly rubbed his hand soothingly.

"Kayla was so worried that you'd be mad about her going on a date with a boy, Doctor O." Kira added. "I explained to her the difference between a play date and a real date…but she still wants to go shopping."

Tommy deflated hearing that and Kimberly nodded understandingly. "I hate that I'm missing all this, but I trust you guys. Go ahead and take her shopping. When we meet up in San Diego, we'll have a little outing, as a family…just Kayla and us and we'll make sure she understands that we're okay with all this. If this is a soul fusion thing, then we'll have to tread carefully."

Tommy sighed softly and then looked at Conner. "I'm sure you used your gift to scan Kayla. Is everything okay with her?"

Connor nodded. "I hate using the word, 'Aura' but she's bright and off the scales happy."

"You have scales now?" Kimberly asked.

Connor nodded. "Ever since I found out about my shaman sight, I've been scanning everyone. You and Dr. O are fully fused Ninjetti so your…spirits are happy and bright with an extra gimmer to it. On the other end of the scale is Ethan and Melanie. They're bright and happy but there's no extra gleam to it. This morning, Kayla was bright and happy and she has the faintest glimmer to it, but it's not fully blown like you guys. Rocky and Aisha are the same as you. Today after she encountered Jude, Kayla's spirit was brighter. Not on the level that you and Kim are…but it's definitely brighter than before." Connor paused. "Does that make any sense to you guys?"

Tommy was still frowning a little bit but Kim was nodding. "As long as she stays bright and happy, then I'm okay with all of this." She paused and gazed at her husband. "We should go for now; I think My Love needs time to process all of this." She smiled at them and then finished with a promise to send Kira some of her online discount emails that could be used to get Kayla want she wanted from the girls' clothing store.

By that time, Kira noticed that her mentor's eyes were glowing a brilliant green. "Yeah, we'll just let you guys get on with it. We'll keep in touch. Night guys."

* * *

She ended the call and then sat back as Conner closed the laptop looked at her. "Well, I don't know about you, but I'm ready to get some sleep."

Kira gave him a long look and then pressed a kiss to his lips. When she got up and walked slowly to the door, she lifted up her top and tossed it to the side. When she slipped her bra off and turned to him, she gave him a 'come hither' look and he happily followed her into the bedroom.

"So, you're not sleepy?" He asked trying to guage her mood.

Kira smiled at him and pushed her jeans down to her ankles.

Conner smirked at her and pulled her close to him. "I see." Hooking his thumbs into the side of her panties, he slowly pulled them down and kissed her shoulder. The kiss continued as he trailed his fingers down to the apex of her thighs. When he looked her in the eyes again, he asked her in a soft voice. "How do you want this to go?"

She licked her lips and then pulled his shirt over his head. When she went for his jeans, he chuckled seductively. "Get on the bed, Rockstar. I'm taking care of you tonight."

Kira whispered something in his ear, and he kissed her heatedly.

"There's no need to rev me up, I'm already there."

* * *

 **So, how did you guys like this chapter? Please leave a review to let me know what you think of all this!**

 **I'm hoping to start work on the next chapter for My Kimberly/My Tommy. Keep your eyes peeled!**


	9. Stepping Up, Helping Out

**Hi everyone! I'd planned to have this chapter out yesterday, but there was a part I'd written that felt too heavy and I wasn't sure I wanted to include it. Thankfully, fanficrulez was able to help me figure out how to lighten things up.**

 **In this chapter, you'll meet Sapphire's parents: Topaz and Dominique Hawthorne. Those guys belong to me! (Yes, it's normal to get Fast and Furious vibes from a character named Dom. Not sure why I chose that name, but just roll with it.)**

 **I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

 **With the change I made, there's no warnings to worry about.**

 _ **(Continued from Miscreants Chapter 32)**_

 _Leif gave his mate a long look. "Well, I was hoping to discuss this in private, but the plans are put in motion already."_

 _"What plan is that?"_

 _"The Donut Muncher was snooping around for information and may possibly know where the manor is and that Katsume is living there. If he tries to attack the manor, the kids or dogs might get hurt. So, I made mention of us getting married. Now the pig knows about it and hopefully will forget about the manor and go after us."_

 _Many emotions flowed across Sapphire's face but then she bit her lip and nodded. "I don't like this, but i understand. There's been too much bloodshed at the manor already. If he was willing to hurt Katsume, there's no telling what else he would do if he found the place."_

 _Lief softened his gaze as he regarded her. "I didn't expect the wedding to happen this soon, but it's the best alternative. We need to get out of the city without being questioned or detained. Being a married couple on our honeymoon, would help in that."_

 _"And that nice after party we talked about?" Sapphire asked questioned. "I wanted the whole crew there for it!"_

 _"We'll hold one once we're safely away. When we meet up with our friends, we'll have a small feast and do everything you had in mind."_

 _Rook chose this moment to speak up. "So, do I get to be your best man?"_

 _Leif looked up at him, having momentarily forgotten he was there. "Absolutely. I wouldn't pick anyone else…not even other members of the coven."_

 _"And what were you thinking of for the location?" Conner asked from the corner of the room. He'd been sitting there quietly watching everyone, but now chose to speak up. Kira who sat on his lap smiled at them. "Are you going with a graveyard theme?"_

 _Sapphire looked at them with raised brow. "A lot of people would assume that we'd head for the closest cemetery, But it's not my first choice. I'd planned on asking Kimberly for the use of her garden, but now it's too dangerous to hold it there. Not to mention that it's already being used for Melanie's wedding. We may have no choice."_

 _Conner gave them an assessing look. "I may have another option."_

 _Sapphire gave him a look full of hope. "What would that be?"_

 _Conner looked at her and then at Kira. "I think its time to visit the convent. The holy sisters might be able to help us."_

 _Leif gave them a look. "You know the nuns?"_

 _Conner nodded. "Well, we did save them from thugs earlier this year. Maybe they can return the favor."_

* * *

Silence settled heavily in the room for a few moments before a series of beeps went off. Connor was momentarily startled and then realized that the beeps were coming from the messenger bag at his feet. He'd temporarily forgotten it was there.

When Connor pulled the new tech out, he saw Leif and Sapphire and even Rook watching him with interest. Kira kissed his cheek and then got off his lap so he could do what needed to be done.

The gauntlet he pulled out had been a collaboration between Ethan and Billy and he'd promised to test it out. Again, with all the drama going on, he'd forgotten all about it.

Ethan had definitely helped design this communicator; it was a light weight gauntlet covered in leather with the Miscreant Logo on both sides. The skull on the side closest to him had two red buttons where the eye sockets were and the white 'ribs' that stood out against the black leather were meant to disguise the speakers, and on the top of the gauntlet was a reflective disc. On the underside were cords of black leather which held the two sides together.

Conner smiled at the gothic teen and handed it over to him. "This is a communicator prototype developed by Ethan and Billy. It has a stronger signal than most cellphones; I guess you've got your first call on it."

After Leif put it on, he touched the eye buttons on the side.

He looked even more shocked when a holographic image popped up. It was Adam.

"Frog Prince to Cold Stone. Can you hear me?"

Leif looked up at Conner. "This is a thing now? You have holographic technology?"

"We've had it for years now. Wolf Man developed it back in the 90's. But if you can put aside your astonishment. The Miscreants have had a call for help and are needed for a semi-urgent mission.

Leif looked at Sapphire and then back at the holographic image.

"Where? Do we need our gear for it?"

"It's at the Convent of the Secret Sisters. Don't worry about your gear, I already loaded it into the mobile shelter and I'm on my way to the hospital. Can you guys be down in the parking lot in the next 5 minutes?"

"Yeah, but we're a Miscreant down."

"We'll go as your back up." Conner said. "We were going to the convent anyway."

"Ok, I'll be right there. Get downstairs."

Conner got up and looked at Kira. "I guess we're up."

He looked at Jen and Taylor. "I'm guessing you've got this?"

"You bet. We'll keep an eye on Rook just in case the Donut Muncher tries anything."

Leif and Sapphire stood on either side of their friend's hospital bed.

"I hate that I'm gonna miss the action."Rook said with a frown.

Leif held out his hand. "Rest easy dude. We'll let you know what happened when we get back…and maybe we can bring you back some real food."

"I could use a really thick burger and salty fries."

Leif grinned. "Count on it."

"Go kick some ass."

Sapphire walked around the bed and accepted her mate's hand. "Let's roll out."

When they got to the parking lot. The refurbished SWAT van was waiting for them. The cops had done right by them and had wrapped the van in shiny black and a generic skull logo had been applied to both sides of the van and the team name had been written in a graffiti style font.

It looked cool, but it would look even more badass once Katsume drew their new logo. As soon as they got rid of the asshole chasing him, that is.

Leif swung the door open and saw Adam sitting in the driver's seat. He swiveled his chair around and looked at them. "You guys ready for this?"

* * *

 **The Convent**

 **About 20 minutes later**

The moment they pulled up, a nun, whom Conner immediately recognized as one of the women he and Kira had saved from the thugs at the Walmart waiting for them.

Cold Stone looked at his bride. "It's show time. They may be more at ease with a woman to speak to. I'll be your back up."

Nocturne stepped out of the van and heard her mate climb out behind her.

"I'm Nocturne and this is my mate, Cold Stone, "Did you call for help?"

"Yes, we did. A very pregnant mama dog was found in our back garden and she looks ready to deliver. She's resting on a blanket in the office."

They followed the older nun through the gates and into a very picturesque office. In the middle of the room, by the fireplace was a very antique looking desk. Behind it, sat a kindly but proper looking nun. The ring she wore on her finger let everyone know that she was the one in charge.

When they walked into the room, the older nun introduced them. "Ma'am, The Miscreants rescue group are here."

The older nun looked up at them at stood to her feet. "I'm so glad you could make it. What names do you go by?"

Sapphire gave her a small dip of her had. "I'm Nocturne and this is Cold Stone. How may we serve the holy sisters?"

The Madre gestured to the female pitbull laying by the fireplace. "She was seeking asylum with us and sleeping under a bench of our garden. We'd love to help her, but we don't have the funds to pay for the supplies she'd need or have access to veterinary care. I'm praying you can help this poor girl out."

Leif walked over to the spotted pitbull who wagged her tail and whined pitifully. Her belly was swollen with puppies, but she didn't look too sickly. Just very tired and pretty uncomfortable.

"It's okay, Momma. You're in good hands now."

When he got up and walked back over to the desk where Sapphire was already seated, he nodded. "If you want to keep her here, we have a veterinarian working with us and she does pro bono for charities. The supplies you need are stocked in our mobile shelter that's parked outside. Once the puppies are weaned, we can find them homes and get this mama spayed. This can be a happy ending for everyone."

Conner watched with interest as the nun that walked them in now sat on the small bench and the mother dog rested her snout on her lap.

"Well, I guess that settles it. The Madre said. If Sister Mable wants to take up the responsibility, then we'd accept any help you can give us."

"It's not a problem. Cold Stone answered as Nocturne got up from the chair and walked out the door. We'll just go get what you need."

When it was just the adults in the room. the Nun spoke up again. "How have you two been. It's been some months since we ran into you. We didn't know you were affiliated with The Miscreants."

Conner nodded. We've known them since before they became the miscreants. They're down half their group due to unforeseen circumstances. We were in the room when they got called in. Rescuing animals is their thing, we're just providing back up today.

"Sister Mable, did you know these people prior to today?"

"Yes, Mother. These are the two wonderful young people that saved us from the thugs and furthermore, they paid for our entire purchase and helped us load everything into the van. They're our heroes."

The nun stood to her feet. "We owe you a huge debt. How can we ever repay you?"

Conner looked at Kira and then at the sisters. "We do have a big favor to ask."

The Madre gave them a long look. "How big a favor?"

When Conner told them everything, the nun sat down heavily in her seat. "That's a lot to take in. How dangerous is this man?"

"As far as we can tell, he's acting on his own. We've already taken down his accomplices, he's an angry sloppy man who's all too aware of his own importance. All we need from you is to conduct this wedding and allow Cold Stone and Nocturne the use of your Chapel. The plan is to take this guy down before he can cause any more trouble. He's got a warrant for his arrest and he's way outside his jurisdiction. He can't do any real damage and he knows it, but he's definitely going to try to mess thing up, just out of spite. If the Great Power is with us, then we'll be able to end this thing and the Miscreants can come back and resume their lives and Paladin can finally be free of the terror he's under."

"We've taken a vow of nonviolence, so you'll be on your own…but we can at least help with the wedding. I'm assuming they have their license and permission from their parents?"

* * *

 **About 1PM**

After getting the Holy Sisters everything, they needed for the Mama-To-Be, it was time to contact the parents and let them in on the plans.

They met up at a steak house and took up a corner booth. When Conner and Kira arrived, Alma was already there, having just closed up her shop for he night. Topaz and Dominique Hawthorne were already seated when Connor and Kira showed up with Leif and Sapphire.

Topaz was definitely Sapphire's mom; there was absolutely no doubting it. The same black hair, the same feminine curves they were even the same height. The only difference that Connor could see was their attire. Mrs Hawthorne dressed in an updated bohemian style of short peasant style skirt and top that showed off her shoulders. Around her neck was very pretty crystal that was elaborately bound with a simple leather brown cord. There was no doubt that there was something mystical about her, but he had a feeling that it was something only his fledgling shaman senses could feel.

Mr. Hawthorne was another story. It was oh so obvious that he was a Blue Collar that liked to work with his hands. As they shook hands, Connor could feel the calluses on his hands. Dom wore blue jeans and a black crew neck shirt under a red plaid shirt. He had rugged good looks and there was a toughness to his persona that made everyone take notice.

Once they were seated and the waiter came by to take drink and appetizer orders, Dom was the first one to speak up. "It's not everyday we get asked out to dinner by complete strangers. How about you let us in on what the special occasion is?"

Conner gave the table a cursory look and then did the same for his surroundings.

When he was sure no one was paying them anymind, he looked at the parents. "A lot happened today; Leif and Sapphire had to make a change to their plans. I'm only helping them to facilitate it."

"And who are you to them? Why are you helping them?" Topaz asked them with a look of cautious interest.

"I'm Connor True-Heart and this is my wife Kira." My best friend is Trent Fernandez and he's the mentor for the Miscreants."

"Dom, this is the man who's responsible for the boost of income for our group. They hired all of us for their wedding. They're good people."

"Bryce and Karen are my parents." Kira added.

Dom gave the both of them a look. "You could've led with that."

Connor chuckled. "It's been a long day. When I woke up this morning, I didn't expect to be called into watch over Rook or to help two of the miscreants with their wedding plans."

That caught all three parents off guard.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Topaz asked. "What does their wedding have to do with anything?"

"Mom, we have to move it up." Sapphire said. "You didn't want us traveling alone until after we're married. Well the Donut Muncher struck this morning and now we need to get out of the city. We're not safe anymore."

Alma gasped softly. "What happened? Are you guys okay?"

"We are…Rook isn't." Leif answered. "He's in the hospital with a big laceration and a possible concussion. He's being kept in there for observation overnight."

Dom narrowed his eyes and leaned forward. "What?"

The teens didn't mince words as they filled the parent in on what happened.

"So, you don't want to go before a judge for this?" Topaz asked. "I thought you didn't want a formal wedding."

"We didn't, but Mr. Trueheart has friends at the convent. They've offered to let us use their older chapel. It's very gothic and filled with candles and an old stained glass window. It's what I've wanted all along. I just didn't know how to get it. It'll still be a small ceremony but it's a step up from the courthouse."

"How did you swing that?" Dom asked. "Did the sisters owe you a favor or something?"

"Something like that." Kira answered. "Back at the beginning of the summer, the day of Kyle's 16th birthday, we saved them from some thugs that were trying to mug them. We took them out and my sweet husband even paid for their gardening supplies and helped them load it into their van. "

Connor gave her wry smile. "Yeah, but that was a group effort. It took the both of us to take those idiots down."

"You're trained fighters." Dom commented. "I shouldn't be surprised."

"We both learned from the same teacher. They run the dojo and sometimes we help out with the tumbling classes. It gives the both of us something to do when we're not being crazy love sick newlyweds...and of course preparing for our little Orca's arrival."

Dom cracked a smile at that and nodded. "We know how that is."

"So, Sapphire told us that you're a shaman?"

Connor nodded. "I'm in training, my dad is the real shaman. I've only just discovered my abilities. The night we did the cleansing ceremony was my first lesson. I realized for the first time that my gift was the ability to see the condition of living spirits…when I looked at Kira and saw for the first time, the spirit of our baby inside her. It was such a beautiful moment for me." As he said this, he smiled softly at his wife and kissed her forehead.

"Can you see mine?" Sapphire asked softly.

Connor gave her a look of soft surprise. "Only with your permission. I don't intrude on someone's privacy unless I suspect they're in trouble."

Sapphire quietly got out of her seat and stood before Connor who brought forth his ability. She had the usual amount of scarring that most people had, but there, in the area of her womb, he could see a bright spot surrounded by her own happy glow.

"I can see it. Congratulations!"

Leif pulled out his wallet and showed them all the sonogram picture. "We just heard the heartbeat today."

"Well I'd say this call for a celebration! Kira said with a grin. I'm ready for dessert!"

* * *

 **3:00 PM**

 **Angel Grove Elementary School**

Connor and Kira pulled up to the school and pulled into a parking spot up front.

"Hey, there." Said the voice of Ariel as she walked over to them from her own car. "I didn't know you were picking Kayla up today."

Connor nodded as Kira sat up straighter. "Yeah, we promised to take Kayla out shopping for her date this weekend."

Ariel grinned at that. "Just for the outing at the pumpkin patch?"

"She's her mother's daughter." Kira answered with a grin. "I've heard stories about her high school days. She had to have a new outfit to wear for every date with Tommy. I'm not the least bit surprised. Neither was Kimberly when we told her about her daughter's request."

"Oh that's adorable." Ariel said with a shake of her head and then paused. "Axel called me during his lunch break and asked about you guys. There's talk going around the school about that cop being corrupt and that he was asking around about the Miscreant's whereabouts. He was getting a bad feeling about that guy."

"He wasn't wrong." Connor answered her. "If you see that cop again, be careful. He's a predator that has no problem targeting women or even children."

That got her attention. "Thanks for telling me. I'll keep my guard up."

Connor nodded. "For the time being, keep your kids close, especially your daughter. Hopefully soon, he'll be in custody and we can all breathe easier."

When the final bell rang, they waited for the kids to walk out the door. When they did, Kira broke out into a smile.

There was Kayla holding hands with Jude and they both wore beaming smiles.

Just out of curiosity, Connor called on his shaman senses and looked at both kids. His jaw dropped just a little when he saw their spirits. They shined brightly as he expected. What he didn't expect was that their precious hearts were beating in sync with each other.

He kissed her cheek sweetly and both their hearts sped up just for a few moments and then went back to normal as he walked towards his mom's car.

Kayla walked towards them and swung her backpack into the back seat.

"Connor, Kira! You're here!"

"Of course, Little Ninja. We did promise a shopping day, didn't we?"

* * *

 **So, what do you guys think? I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and will leave a nice review for me, it helps me keep things going!**

 **Mostly likely, this story will continue with the either My Kimberly/My Tommy or The Miscreants. I haven't decided yet.**


	10. Red Ranger's Fury

**Surprise, you get another chapter! Lately, I've had a surge in energy and these past few chapters have come easier than usual. I know you're all going to enjoy this chapter!**

 **As would be expected, this chapter comes with a warning for profanity! The title of this chapter says it all, so I'll just go sit back and let you guys get to it!**

 **Read on and enjoy. I'll see you at the bottom!**

* * *

 _Excerpt from Chapter 20 of A Time of Peace_

 _The two men stared each other down for a few intense moments and then the corrupt official spoke. "Only a pussy would go hide behind a lawyer."_

 _"Not even close. It's called, 'You're not worth the effort it would take to give you the beat down you deserve.' I'm more than a match for you, and I've taken down bigger asshats than you."_

 _"I really wouldn't test him, officer." Ethan said. "Even if you managed to get through him, you'd still have to get through the both of us, and you don't stand a snowball's chance in hell of against us."_

 _The creep scowled at Trent. "Fine, take the worthless street rat, but if I ever hear of you coming into this city again, I'll come for you and bring my buddies with me."_

 _Conner had stayed quiet this whole time, content to let Trent take the lead, but when he heard the threat, the last of his patience evaporated._

 _He felt some power come to life. He stalked towards them and interjected himself between Trent and the officer. "You can try it, but you won't walk away from the fight. We're leaving with Katsume and you're not going to do a thing to stop us." Trent had backed up a little at the feeling of immense power radiating from his teammate. Conner's eyes were all but glowing. "I suggest you leave now, before something really bad happens to you. If you try and do anything to harm my friends, I will end you."_

* * *

 **The Next Morning**

 **The Dojo**

Connor sat on the mat in a relaxed pose. He'd slept deeply after many rounds of love making. Kira's hormones made her sexual appetite absolutely voracious. When finally, they could do no more, they'd collapsed in a sweaty mess and fallen asleep immediately. He'd woken re energized and had taken a shower while it was still dark out and now, as the sun rose, he quietly meditated and let his emotions out.

Of all his emotions, anger was the strongest. He was angry that the pig had the audacity to show up in his city-especially after he'd specifically threatened to kick his ass if he stepped foot in Angel Grove.

What pissed him off even more was that he laid a hand on innocent women and that he'd put Rook in the hospital.

This asshole cop had gone too far, and all Connor wanted to do right now was hunt down that son of a bitch down and end him before he could crash Leif and Sapphire's wedding.

Weddings were a sacred affair and to have that fucking parasite pollute the air with his foul presence boiled the shaman's blood.

He allowed the anger free rein, but then took a deep breath and let the anger dissipate.

For now.

Once the red anger cleared out, he let his spirit flow outward and relaxed his pose even more. In the quietness, he felt another part of him come to the forefront.

He opened his senses and saw before him, the red ranger…the leader of his team. The one who wielded the power of the T-Rex and the one entrusted with the shield of Triumph. The protector of innocent people and that included all the innocent children now just waking up in the manor.

He'd been there the last time the manor was defiled and did not want to see that happen again.

He startled just a little when he felt a warm furry body sagging against him.

He blinked his eyes and the vision of the red ranger faded.

Looking down, he saw that Tris had decided to join him in the dojo and her eyes pleaded with him to let her stay. They normally didn't allow dogs in the studio, but he just didn't have the strength to shoo her away.

When he blew out a breath, she licked his arm and then thumped her tail against the mat, sensing that she didn't have to leave.

"Good morning, Tris. Did you sleep well?"

As if in answer, she rolled onto her back displaying her belly to him.

"I think you can take that as a yes." David said as he walked into the studio and sat across from his son.

Connor chuckled and rubbed her belly. "I think so too."

"Dogs have an amazing sense. They can tell when someone needs cheering up. But I don't need her to tell me how angry you are. I could sense it from the kitchen."

Connor nodded. "I'm not surprised."

"Want to tell me what caused it, son?"

"Everything, Dad. That donut muncher is in this town, threatening innocent people and now he may have the coordinates to the manor. I'm just done with this predator and personally, I hope he comes after me. I want to take him out before he can harm anyone else."

David nodded. "It's perfectly reasonable to feel that way. You're a warrior, son. And the enemy is causing trouble."

"And preventing me from truly enjoying this time with Kira. I thought these nine months were supposed to be about nesting, picking out names, and putting together Kira's baby shower. Kira was interested in attending the baby expo, later this month, but with everything happening, all of that's been put on hold."

David nodded his head again. "In times of war, personal desires must be put aside so that battles can be waged. Thankfully, this enemy may be vanquished today and then you can continue on this nine-month journey with your bride."

Connor sighed as his mind became more settled.

"I really hope so; even Mesogog wasn't this hard to defeat."

"Well, that's because you had a team to back you up and many zords to pilot." Rocky answered as he stood outside the dojo.

When Connor and David stood to their feet, Rocky crossed his arms. "While it's not very Ranger like to use zords, you do have a couple of rough necks inside ready to help out with this plan of yours. They're already eaten most of the breakfast feast. If you hurry, I left a plate in the warmer for you."

That was a good enough reason for them to head for the kitchen.

When they walked in the door, Tris immediately walked towards Kira and sat at her feet thumping her tail against the floor.

Connor took his sandals off at the door and walked in, taking in the sight of all the people. The kids were there chowing down, and yes, Bella was sitting by Kayla's side and Spirit was doing the same with Kailen. Diesel was munching a piece of bacon as a couple of the men from the restaurant talked amongst themselves.

Bryce was also there, and he was talking with two other biker dudes that Connor had never seen before. Thankfully, Rocky was there to make introductions.

"Connor, this is Odin. He's the husband of Kyle's pediatrician and the tattoo artist responsible for giving us our first tattoos." He pointed to the bearded Viking next to Odin. This is Thordred, he's the beta."

Connor shook his hand, "Hi, I'm Connor True-heart. Thanks for coming to help."

"There's a predator on the loose." Odin answered. "The only way for evil to win is when good people to do nothing."

Thordred nodded. "What do you need from us? What are we going up against?"

When Connor looked at them, he added. "I was there at the assembly when that moron started up his Darwinism crap. I don't want that kind of thinking in those schools, not with my twins almost ready for middle school. Please tell me he's on the hit list."

Connor nodded. "He's on the list, though he's not the biggest threat."

He's managed to pass his bigoted views onto his son. Brock was singing like a canary to the Donut Muncher. He may have even compromised this place. There's too many kids and babies here that may be endangered if that guy manages to find this place.

"We can't risk their safety by letting that guy get by us." Bryce added.

"So, what's the plan?" asked another man. "Are we going after this cop or not?"

Connor looked up to see none other than Skull who sat on a barstool with his helmet in his lap. Down at the end of the table, Kayla sat at the end of the table, Jude was already sitting next to her and Aisha was putting a plate of food down in front of him.

"Leif has already set things into motion by dangling himself in front of the donut muncher's face. Most likely, he'll try and crash the wedding tonight, thinking that Katsume is in attendance."

"So, what do you need us to do?"

"The most important thing to do is to keep the teens safe." Rocky answered as he put the last of the dishes into the dishwasher. "Rook is being released this morning, and the boys are holding their bachelor party at the diner and the girls are having a spa day at the hotel.

Connor looked up at him. "He's been cleared?"

Rocky nodded. "That's where Adam is this morning. He's meeting with Rook's dad and bringing them to the diner. I'm supposed to go there in a few minutes and get those brand-new appliances going.

While movie night was going on last night the rest of us were at Sam's Club. Other than some basic necessities like sprinkles and whipped cream, we're all set for festivities.

"Well, we can go pick that up." Connor said. You got a list for me?"

* * *

 **Walmart**

The guys were just about done when it happened. They were standing in the frozen section loading up on the whipped cream when out of nowhere, one of the gothic kids from the coven came running towards them. She looked terrified and Skull, who was the closest to her, could almost hear the heart beating in her chest. She wore a black concert t shirt and dark ripped jeans. It only took a second for him to realize that she was one of his daughter's school friends. If he recalled correctly, she'd just gotten her driver's license.

"Penny, what's going on?"

"He's here. He tried to grab me. I saw Mr. True-Heart and I knew he'd help."

"We can all help, where did you see him?"

"He's following me. I can hear his heavy steps."

"Hey, it's okay. Just stick with us." Skull answered. "Are you here with your parents?"

"No, mom sent me here to get some more stuff for my baby sister. I think that he's stalking me."

Connor walked over to her. "Well, you're safe now. We'll take care of the stalker."

Skull looked up at him. "I'll accompany her and get what she needs."

When they were gone, Bryce and his buddies walked off in different directions to see where the pig was.

Under the guise of getting some milk, Bryce spied the donut muncher following them. He didn't give any indication that he recognized him but walked back to his son-in law and put the milk in the cart.

"Yeah, he's definitely watching us. The ball's in your court."

Connor nodded and then responded loud enough to be overheard. "I don't care. Let that pansy ass wanker hear me. He's not even worthy to carry my jockstrap. I'll never let him get near Katsume."

David caught on to what he was doing. "You better be careful son; pride goes before the fall. I know you're a tough warrior, but I don't want that piggy to get any kind of drop on you."

"He's not a threat. In fact, I hope he comes after me. I've warned him to stay away. If he wants a fight, I'll kick his ass all the way back to LA."

"I've no doubt, Son. Anyway, we better get on out of here. Let's get those chocolate sprinkles and get out of here."

As they walked away, Bryce hung back just to see if they were still being followed. Sure enough, that cop looked pissed and he was definitely following them. As stealthily as Bryce could, he took the long way around and found Connor and the rest of the guys checking out.

Skull was ushering teenager out of the door, all the while keeping his head on a swivel.

They took their time checking out, to give Skull the chance to get back to them.

With the groceries paid for, Connor pushed the cart outside and headed towards his mustang.

"Hey, Son. It might be a better idea to put these groceries in my truck…just in case you wreck."

Connor sighed heavily. "Yeah, you're right. I'm seeing red and my warrior is fighting to come out."

David put an arm around his son's neck and pulled their heads closer together. "I know he is; I can all but see red flames coming off you. But you need to keep a clear head if you want to do battle and walk away from this. You need to end this quickly so you can get back to your wife, and furry daughter. Kira will understand it, but your furry daughter won't. She'll never understand why her daddy never made it back."

Those dire words of warning were enough to force his vision to clear. Connor forced himself to relax. He took a few deep breaths and then whispered, "May the spirits be with me."

David stepped away from him. "We don't want any innocent drivers in the way so take the road towards that campsite. I've already alerted Officer Tesla of what's happening; he's tracking my truck and I'll be driving within sight of you. He's got an ambulance and a firetruck standing by just in case. The moment that ass hat is down, they'll swarm."

Connor nodded and then turned to Bryce. "I'm counting on you to have my back."

"Be careful son. My daughter needs you to come back to her."

"Then let's get this over with."

* * *

Connor got into his car and took a moment to text his wife… just in case he didn't make it out of this. He wasn't an idiot; he knew the pig was gunning for him. Strapping himself in, he turned the engine over and pulled out of the parking lot.

Taking advice from his father, he headed down the road till he hit the back roads. Five miles had passed when he saw a flashy looking Chevy speeding towards him like it was possessed.

"Come on, you arrogant pig-headed asshole; let's dance."

Connor hit the gas pedal and sped up. He was already over the speed limit and yet he kept hitting the gas. Just ahead of him, on the side of the road, he saw a familiar motorcycle sitting, ready to assist him. Looking back in the rear-view mirror he saw the Chevy was even closer than before, and he pressed the pedal to the floorboard.

His mustang was fast, but he had a feeling that the other car was faster. He kept his precious car in tune and changed the oil on a regular basis, but he knew he was about to lose the fight. The pig had obviously souped up his car; and his pretty mustang was no match for it."

"I'm so sorry baby." He said to his beloved car. "This isn't going to end well."

Just as he looked back into the rear-view mirror, he could see the pig sitting in the driver seat and he braced for impact.

The Chevy was right alongside him and the cop gave him an evil grin right before turning his wheel sharply and shoving the mustang into the ditch at top speed. The mustang flipped over landing in the ditch, and Connor cursed loudly at the flash of pain as he felt his shoulder dislocate.

Just out of the corner of his eye he saw the flashy Chevy being rear-ended by the bigger truck and shoved into the path of a bigger tree.

David pulled his truck off the side of the road as t Skull's bike pulled up behind Bryce's Massive truck. He turned back to the overturned mustang and just like in so many news stories, felt the all powerful surge of adrenaline. With a mighty shove he was able to turn the mustang over so that he could rescue his son.

This whole time, Connor felt his inner warrior flare to life. In his ears he could hear the sound of an ethereal and powerful mustang…along with the sound of sharp hooves hitting the ground. He looked over as his dad ripped the door of its hinges.

"Connor, are you okay?"

When he met his dad's eyes they widened. A bright red, ethereal light encompassed the young shaman as he climbed out of the wreckage of his car.

David felt the power radiating from his son and knew there would be no stopping what was about to happen.

On the other side of the road, Skull and Bryce had pulled the evil probation officer out of his car and dragged him by both arms across the road. Though the asshat struggled against his captors, they held him fast and forced him to his knees before the angry warrior.

"Didn't I tell you to stay away from me?" Connor demanded in a scary voice that reeked of power. "You should have stayed gone. I don't tolerate micro-dicked freaks coming after those who can't protect themselves."

The cop shuddered in fear as the shaman toward over him. The smell of piss was extremely pungent, but Connor was far passed noticing things like that. Leaning down, he grabbed the deathly pale chin and forced him to look up.

"You really fucked up, coming here. It's all over for you now."

When the pig didn't respond. Connor knelt down to his level. Those evil eyes had rolled back into his head.

"What the hell?"

David checked his pulse. "He's not breathing."

"No, he's not getting off so easily!" Connor yelled. When he started to grab the Donut Muncher, he felt David pushing him backwards. "No Son, you've done your job. The cops are here, we better let them take over."

When the glowing warrior struggled against his father's grip, Bryce got up and hugged Connor from behind. "It's okay, Conner; the enemy is vanquished. You can rest now."

"Let the warrior rest." David said looking into his eyes. "We need Connor to come back to us."

Connor felt his vision clear and he sank into his father's arms. The warrior's glow faded back and with him the ethereal flames.

"We've got you, Son." Bryce said. "Let's get you into the back of the truck so that the medics can make sure you're okay."

* * *

 **20 minutes later**

When Kira pulled up in the SUV, she was frightened. Tris, whom had hopped in the back with her, jumped out of the open window and ran up to her master with a cry.

Connor smiled down at her as the EMT stood back still holding the almost empty IV bag aloft.

"Who's this pup?"

"That's my furry daughter, Tris."

Connor smiled down at her. "In a little bit Tris. I promise I'm fine."

"Is he really?" Kira asked as she brushed her husband bangs back from his head.

"Thankfully, he managed to walk away with only a dislocated shoulder." The EMT answered her. "He wrecked that pretty mustang of his in the crash and then collapsed in the back of this truck. I'm only giving him IV fluids because that display of power drained him. "He was pretty lethargic when I got here."

Kira sighed and then the hormones reared their heads. "Connor True-heart, you scared me! "You can't just send me a text like that and then not respond!"

Connor took her anger in stride. "That asshat was gunning for me and I didn't know for sure if I'd survive this showdown. The donut muncher was crazy aggressive. I wanted you to know that if I didn't make it, you were the last thought I had."

Kira wiped tear from her eye as Officer Tesla walked up to them. In the background. A gurney with a body bag was being loaded into coroner's van.

"He's dead?" Kira asked softly.

Officer Tesla nodded. "Yeah, sudden heart attack. You don't have to worry about him anymore."

"Will there be any backlash from this?" David asked as he walked up.

"No, we don't think so. I already called the LAPD to find out his official status and it turns out that he was dismissed from the force at least two months ago. This whole time he was operating outside the law and bluffing his way to get information. He didn't even have a badge with him."

Connor sighed in relief as David asked, "What happens next?"

"I've already taken statements from everyone involved and I'll type up the report stating that this guy died of a heart attack during a road rage incident. In the meantime, you are free to go and spread the good news."

Kira sighed in relief and leaned against Connor. "Thank goodness it's over."

* * *

 **Rocky's Restaurant**

When they walked into the restaurant, the bachelor party was in full swing.

Leif who was munching on a thick juicy burger looked at him with concern. "Hey, is everything okay?"

Connor grinned at him. "Yeah. It's all good."

Rocky looked at him expectantly. "I was concerned when only Skull showed up with the groceries. Did you have any troubles?"

Connor gave them all a smile. "The Donut Muncher is dead. Everything will be okay now."

"Are you serious?" Leif asked in shock. Rook walked up beside him. "It's really over?"

Connor nodded. "Yep, he died kneeling at my feet. You two can have the honor of calling Paladin and the others to let them know." He paused and looked over at Rocky. "In the meantime, I expended loads of energy kicking ass. I could use something to eat and drink."

Rocky grinned at him. In that case, have a seat. I'll get you and Kira something to eat and you can tell me all about it."

* * *

 **This chapter included my first time I writing a real car chase scene. I hope you enjoyed it.**

 **Up next, the wedding and celebration of the Donut Muncher's Demise.**

 **This chapter took a lot out of me, so I hope you'll all be kind enough to leave reviews. It would be nice to know if you guys like this chapter!**


	11. Separation Anxiety

**Hi everyone! Thanks for your patience as I get these chapters figured out. It's not easy to weave three separate stories into one tapestry of fiction, but it is worth it as this chapter will prove. I had originally planned to go this route in the next chapter of My Kimberly/My Tommy, but it fit better here.**

 **RL is about to get a little more complicated as I prepare for yet another move. I can't put off packing up any longer so these chapters might get a little slower in the next couple of weeks until I'm settled into my new digs. Still, I wanted to get this new chapter out before I get started.**

 **That being said, there are a few warnings for this chapter. As can be expected, Connor has recently had a near death experience so you can expect that a hormonal, pregnant Kira will be taking her husband to task for all of that. So this chapter comes with a lemon warning and the expected profanity warning attached to it.**

 **This chapter deals with separation anxiety, (hence the name) so I don't know if that would be a trigger for anyone, but I'm going to add that to the warnings for this chapter just in case.**

 **I guess that should do it for this AN; feel free to read on and see me at the bottom.**

* * *

 **Angel Grove Airport**

 **Short Term Parking**

Connor sat back in the driver's seat of the SUV as the parents ushered the newest newlyweds into the airport and got them checked in. That was the downside of being minors, they needed to be escorted to the ticket counter.

In the meantime, Connor and Kira took the time to relax from their hectic day. It'd been a while since they felt this exhausted. They weren't rangers anymore, but the way they felt reminded both of them of the aftermaths of battle.

"Kira, are you okay?" Connor asked as he stroked Kira's back. He'd reclined the seat back to accommodate her and she rested against his chest.

He felt her warm breath on his neck and he could all but feel the stress radiating from her body.

When she didn't respond he kissed the crown of her head. "Kira, are you asleep?"

Kira blew a breath out, "No, it's just the stress of the day getting to me. My hormones aren't helping either. I could have lost you today and the thought of that feels both devastating and frightening."

Connor felt that stab of guilt. "I'm sorry I scared you. It wasn't planned at all, but when I saw the chance to end the threat, I couldn't pass it up. I know it doesn't make things any easier on you."

Kira exhaled harshly. "I don't even know how to feel about everything that happened today. Part of me wants to scream at you for being so reckless and the other part wants to hold you and never let you go…and…" Kira trailed off biting her lip.

Connor pushed a strand of hair away from her face. "And?"

"Dammit." Kira cursed softly.

Connor helped her sit up. "What is it?"

"You wrecked the mustang today…I had plans for you and that car."

Connor couldn't help the grin. "Do tell."

Kira blew out a breath. "I wanted to give you your fantasy, Jock. The one where I ride you in the backseat of your mustang out in the middle of nowhere. I don't see how that can happen when you've wrecked the car."

Connor kissed her for that. "Every second with you is my fantasy. I get to spend everyday with my smoking hot wife, and every time we go out in public, I get to show you off and make all the other men jealous…and when we're alone, I get to make love to you with the knowledge that it's me and no one else that makes you moan and gasp my name is ecstasy."

Kira lost it at that and her need flooded her underwear.

Connor grimaced. "I'm not helping, am I?"

Kira sighed and fidgeted on his lap. "No, you're not. Damn, I'm even hornier now that I've been all day. Damn hormones…"

Connor chuckled and kissed her again. "Hold that idea; I'll find us a place."

Kira chuckled and kissed him. "But this isn't the mustang."

Connor smiled at her. "I know, but this SUV has a a lot of room in the back and I put a few blankets in there for emergencies."

Kira felt a thrill of excitement go through her at the idea and she kissed her husband hotly and carefully crawled into her seat and put her seat belt on.

"Get me out of here."

It was a struggle to not speed out of the parking lot and onto the main road. Kira bit her lip and fought the urge to stare at the big bulge in the front of Connor's jeans. Her valiant attempt failed when he reached down to adjust himself. She couldn't stop the moan nor could stop her own hands from wandering down to press the seam over her crotch.

"We're almost there, Kira." He said in a tight voice. "I promise that we're not far from the perfect spot."

"Just get there. I really need to fuck you."

That spurred Connor on even more and he barely held to the speed limit. Up ahead was an older camping ground. There wasn't a light on and not a single camper or RV insight.

It was perfect.

As soon as he turned off the engine, he looked at his wife. "Just a few more minutes and I'm all yours."

He hurried out of the driver's seat and in no time at all, he had the back seat folded down and out of the way and had spread all the blankets out in a makeshift pallet.

He felt Kira's presence behind him, and he turned around with a cocky grin.

He shivered with anticipation as she ran her fingers under his shirt and then lifted it over his head. He groaned softly as she unbuttoned his pants and shoved them down past his hips.

"Get in…" She demanded in a soft voice.

Connor shoved his pants down the rest of the way, climbed into the back and lay on the pallet. He watched her with dark eyes as she climbed in after him and stripped her own clothes off.

Kira loved how her jock's eyes never left hers as she discarded her sexy underthings and straddled his thighs.

When she felt his fingers prying her slit apart, she startled just a little bit. When he pushed his fingers into her pussy, she moaned in ecstasy.

When he tasted his fingers, she lost it.

She pushed his hand away and he got the message. He gripped her hips steadily and helped her onto his thick shaft. She gasped his name as he gently pushed up and when he was as far up into her as he could get, he waited for her to take control.

He splayed a hand over her abdomen. There was just the barest hint of a bump there, but he could feel the difference. He really wanted to kiss her belly but she'd already begun to pick up a rhythm and he did his best to match it.

With every move of her sexy body, she was steadily blowing his mind. He gripped her hips in a way he knew might leave marks in the morning, but there was no way he could let go now.

Kira paused, looking down at him and gently removed his hands from her hips. She pushed his wrists back till they were level with the blankets and then she really began to give it to him. He groaned loudly with the way she worked him over.

"Kira…so close…don't cum without me…"

He could feel himself coming undone with the intensity of her movements and he felt himself being brought to the edg; any second he was going to burst!

"I'm close…oh fuck, I'm almost there. Connor…fuck…I'm cumming!"

Connor licked his lips and then shifted his hips, thrusting up into her. It never failed to bring her over the edge and this time was no different; with only a few thrusts, she was tumbling over the edge. Connor fought hard to watch every second of the erotic display, but soon his own body was straining with the need to cum. Within seconds, he was exploding inside her and he was really, really glad that no one but his wife could hear the sounds he was making.

When finally, they both came down, Connor gingerly sat up with her still seated on him in the most intimate way possible.

He kissed her breathless and she held tightly onto him. When the kiss ended, their eyes met again and he could see the tears in her eyes. He wiped away the tears in her eyes with the pads of his thumbs.

In that moment, he realized how scared she'd truly been to lose him. It shattered him and he held her close, kissing her eyes.

"I'm sorry Kira…I truly am. I swear that I'll…"

"No." Kira said putting a hand to his chest. "You know that neither of us can make such a promise; not with our powers reactivated. If the Earth were to be threatened again and it's bigger than just a crazy psycho and a few minions, we may very well have to jump into the fight. Just promise me that you won't ever go into a battle without backup or your armor again."

When he nodded, she took his hand and put it on her stomach. He looked down at her stomach again and then looked up at her. "We have our lives to live now; in 8 more months we're having a baby. I want you to be there for everything… that's not going to happen if something tragic happens to you. There's a reason that we have all the other ranger teams."

Connor nodded and kissed her again; this time their lip lock was more tender and full love.

When the kiss ended, he sighed softly. "I promise Kira, no more rushing into battle without armor and an army backing me up."

Kira sighed and gently kissed him back.

Their afterglow continued for a few minutes more and they spent it cuddling and enjoying the silence.

And then the cellphone rang. Connor hurried to reach over the seat to grab his phone from the console.

It was his grandfather calling. "Hey, what's up?"

"How far from home are you two?" Connor instantly noticed the distress in his grandfather's voice.

"Not that far, we can be home in twenty minutes. What's wrong?"

"Kayla has become completely inconsolable. She won't tell me what's wrong but keeps asking for you two. I think this might be soul fusion related. She's really freaking out."

Connor looked at Kira. "We're on our way."

* * *

 **The Manor**

When they arrived at the manor and the SUV skidded to a stop, Kira saw that both Adam, Rocky and Andros were waiting for them. Connor let Kira out in the driveway and then parked the car.

"Where's Kayla?" Kira asked.

She's in the med-bay on my ship with Ash. It's high tech and well equipped to handle this kind of emergency."

"Are you going to beam us up, then?" Kira asked.

Andros snorted softly. "Nope, we're going to use the lift. With my position terminated, NASADA can't house my ship anymore, so it's going to be floating in the backyard until the delegates pull their heads out of their asses and let me have my position back."

Connor had parked the car and raced back to him at super-speed. "Are things getting worse?"

"It wasn't unexpected, but that's not important right now. We need to figure out what's happened to make Kayla freak out like this."

"It's not just Kayla." Adam added. "I just got a call from Skull. Jude's really upset and it started around the same time that Kayla's…episode started up."

"But I thought that only happened with Ninjetti Couples."

"Exactly. Tanya and I are fused, but she doesn't feel the spike in my moods, not like the other ninjetti do."

"You think Skull's a descendant of the Ninjetti?" Kira asked.

Rocky nodded. "Or Ariel. Dulcea told us that all of the Ninjetti warriors were slaughtered. But she said nothing of the offspring or their caretakers. It's entirely possible that some of those offspring's descendants made it here to Earth and mated with humans and passed down the gene like we did."

"Billy's searching the vaults of the Command Center to see if it holds any record of refugees being sent here." Adam added. "Skull is on his way here with Jude and once they are both calmed down, we're going to need to have a conference with Tommy and Kim and settle matters one and for all."

* * *

 **Andros' ship**

 **The Medical Bay**

It took a few moments for their eyes to adjust to the softly lit medical room; when they did, they were amazed. It was still a pristine room with all the basic tools and machines, but all those had been put away in favor of a very comfortable cot with extremely soft looking pillows and blankets. On three of the walls were plasma screens with images of a massive coral reef and more than a few Mer-people swimming about in what looked like very modern day swim attire.

"How are they breathing underwater?" Kira asked. "These don't look like CGI."

"That's because they're real mermaids." Ashley answered. "They exist even here on earth, but they're very well hidden to keep gawkers and hunters away from them. However, on KO-35, they live alongside everyone else openly and they're experts on natural remedies. I learned everything I know from Healer Aquilla, she's an expert on PTSD treatment and many mental disorders. This program is one we developed together, it uses all the senses to counter overstimulation and anxiety. Here on the ship, I adapted what I could to create a soothing atmosphere." Ashley paused and looked over at Kayla.

"It seems to be helping, but I'm hoping talking to you will help her calm down even more."

Connor nodded and walked over to the cot where Kayla rested. Next to her was Diesel who sat by her looking like the worried grandfather he was. When Connor approached, Kayla turned over and the tears started up again.

"Connor, you gotta help me!"

Connor took Diesel's spot and kept his voice as calm as he could. "Well, that's why I'm here. Before we talk about what's bothering you, I want you to lay on your back as still as you can so I can get a good look at you."

Kayla obeyed and Connor scanned her with his shaman sight. There weren't any new emotional scars or blemishes, but he hated how dim and muddied her naturally bright aura had become.

Connor blinked again and the shaman sight was replaced by his normal sight.

"What do you see?" Diesel asked softly.

"A very depressed little ninja." Connor answered as he sat by her cot. "Kayla, what dimmed your light?"

"Jude can't come with us. We're going on a trip and I hafta leave him behind!" Kayla said in a sadder voice than Connor had ever heard.

Connor nodded giving her his full attention. "What makes you think that?"

"Because Daddy doesn't like him, and he'll get upset if Jude comes with us and I don't know if Jude's dad likes me either or will let him come."

Kayla's tears were just falling down her cheeks; it broke Connor's heart to see it.

"Hey come here, little Ninja. It's going to be okay."

When Kayla crawled into his lap and rested her head on his chest, Kira's heart skipped a beat at how sweet he looked.

"You're a shaman…it's like a spirit doctor and everyone listens to the doctors." Kayla continued. "I thought he might listen to you and talk to Jude's daddy so that he can come with us."

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the sad look on Diesels face as he walked towards Andros and the lift. He had no doubt that he was calling his son.

Connor hugged Kayla tight and then rubbed her back. "Well, that is an issue isn't it?"

Kayla nodded. "What're we going to do?"

"Well, I think we should wait till Jude and his dad gets here. I think we need to have a conference with both your parents and Jude's parents. But even if there was an issue, I'd hand over all the cash they need to be able join us."

"That won't be necessary." Said Skull as he walked into the room. Jude who was at his side, rushed over to Kayla's side as she climbed off Connor's lap.

"Are you okay?" he asked as he wrapped her up in a hug.

Connor took that moment to scan her again with his sight and just as he expected. Her aura was slowly brightening up and for that he was relieved. But it also confirmed his theory.

Jude's aura was just as bright and happy. That extra shine that he saw in the other ninjetti children was there too. He then looked up at Skull and raised a brow at how that extra glow was there too.

"Either you're staring at me with your special powers or I must be sexier than I realized."

Connor chuckled. "No, I was just confirming a theory I had."

"What do I look like?" Skull asked in a more sober tone.

Connor turned back just a moment to check the kids; they were broth sitting on the cot watching the merfolks. Their souls were much brighter now, and he knew they'd be okay for the time being.

"It looks good-nice and bright. Much like Jude's. But before I fill you guys in on everything else, we should get out of range of the munchkins. There's a lot to discuss and not all of it is safe for little ears."

* * *

 **The Manor's Kitchen**

As predicted, Ariel had shown up a few minutes after her husband and now waited with the others in the kitchen. When the men entered, she got up and looked at her husband.

"Is he okay now?

"He is now." Skull answered.

"I was holding off on asking this, but what's going on? Jude's never acted like this before."

Connor looked at the parents. "Before I say anything, you should know that what's happening with both Kayla and Jude isn't bad at all. In fact, it could be a good thing for both of them."

"I was hoping for more clarification than that." Ariel said honestly.

There will be more, but I was waiting for Tommy and Kim to join us by Skype. It involves them too."

"Working on that." Taylor said as she and Jen walked into the room with a compact projection device.

"Never seen that kind of tech before." Skull commented.

"That's because it's not mainstream tech…at least not yet. But that's not important right now. All you need to know is that this will allow much stronger signals and it's a secure line. It will be as if they're sitting in this room."

It took a few moments for the call to go through, but soon Tommy and Kim were sitting before them.

"What's wrong with Kayla?" Tommy asked.

Connor looked at them. "She's okay now that Jude is with her." His eyes zeroed in on his mentor. "I know you may not like it, but both Diesel and I can confirm that their souls are fused together. Tonight, proves it."

Tommy nodded. "Yeah, I figured as much. I've already been given an earful by my father, so let's skip the lecture."

Connor shook his head. "I'm not sure I can. I'm acting shaman right now and I'm telling you both that whatever animosity is left over from your high school rivalry needs to die tonight, you both need to bury the hatchet before we have another episode like tonight."

Tommy looked stricken. "Episode?"

"Yeah. That's the only way to put it. She was freaking out because of the trip this weekend. She was worrying about having to leave Jude behind when we go. She was afraid to ask you because she thinks that you'll be angry. She thinks you don't like Jude and that Skull will forbid the trip."

"I remember pretty clearly what happened when you were separated back in Reef Side. Kayla will remember it too and that most likely contributed to the meltdown. Little ones hear everything, and she might have heard you talk about that rivalry and assumed that you really hated each other. She's only seven and won't understand about high school drama."

Kimberly was nodding soberly, but Skull and Ariel looked confused.

"I'm going to need you guys to translate this into layman's terms." Skull commented. "I'm just a bike mechanic."

Connor looked at him. "My shaman sight allows me to see the state of living spirits. In most cases, a happy healthy child is lit up like bright LED lights at Christmastime. That's how Kayla is most of the time. Tonight, when I scanned her, her lights were dim like a cheaply made flashlight. The moment that she saw Jude, there was immediate improvement."

"I'll leave the story telling to Tommy and Kimberly, but what I will tell you is that as long as we keep Kayla and Jude together, everything will be fine. I'm not saying you have to move into the manor, but you need to coordinate with each other. Don't take any long-distance trips outside the city without bringing the other along or I can promise that there will be a repeat of tonight."

"This is pretty intense." Ariel commented. "This soul fusion…is it like they're soulmates, like one day they're going to get married?"

Tommy nodded gravely. "Yeah, we've seen this play out with Kyle and Autumn, but didn't recognize it because they're always together."

"Even before we wore the mantel, Aisha and Rocky and I were a trio." Adam explained. "So when Tanya came along and we became parents, it only made sense that we bring the kids along with us. It was just always done that way. We had no way of knowing that our power genes were passed down to our children."

"Ok, so how does that translate to what happened tonight?" Ariel asked. "Did this… _soul fusion_ thing allow Jude to know something was wrong with Kayla?"

Rocky nodded solemnly. "Yeah, that was the confirmation for all of us. This soul fusion thing is like a link. I doubt Jude or Kayla will fully understand what happened tonight. Kyle and Autumn will be able to tell you in more detail what an uncompleted bond feels like since they experienced it."

At Skull's questioning look, Rocky smirked. "Let's just say that when we left earth, Billy and Adam were the only virgins in the group."

Kira leaned up against her husband watching everything. "I think all will be well now that the parents are involved."

Connor kissed her neck. "You tired from our romp earlier?"

"Yeah, and I want a nice long bath too."

Connor took her hand. "Nice hot bubble bath coming right up."

It had been a long day for them so Conner and Kira walked away to their house. Their job was over for the night, what happened next was in the hands of the parents.

* * *

 **So there you have it. What did everyone think?**

 **Just a note: I can definitely say that I'm ending the rivalry thing between Tommy and Skull with this chapter because I'm finding the whole thing to be redundant and they will now be burying the hatchet. I can also say that the next chapter for My Kimberly/My Tommy will deal with the death of that particular rivalry.**

 **Anyway, as I stated earlier, their might be a lull between chapters as I will be preparing for the move and any of you guys who have dealt with moving understands what a tedious process that can be.**

 **Thank you again to everyone for being so patient!**

 **See you next chapter!**


	12. Something Wicked This Way Comes

**Hi everyone! I'm sorry once again that this chapter has taken me so long to post. I've been very busy making masks for the family members that need them as well as looking for other creative outlets when i needed a break from writing and the very annoying entity known as writer's block.**

 **I've written this chapter three different ways and the one you're reading today is the only one that works out for me.**

 **This chapter is supposed to be fun and light hearted chapter that explores just a little bit of the Skullovitch family from Connor and Kira's POV.**

 **Anyhow, I hope this chapter brighten's someone's day. During these dark times, I want to encourage all of you to seek out moments of happiness to drown out these dark and intense times.**

 **To quote 'The Crow' : "It can't rain all the time!"**

 **There's no real warnings for this chapter, so feel free to read on and see me at the bottom!**

* * *

 **The Day of The Trip**

 **Early Morning**

 _The air rushed through his hair as his beautiful steed, a young paint horse carried him across the field. Connor moved with the beast, with only a red and yellow woven blanket between him and the bare back. His strong hands gently grasped the long white mane._

 _The connection he felt with the animal was strong and steady as he saw the fence ahead of him. He flattened himself against the horses neck as she made the jump and cleared the threshold. It was a smooth landing and they slowed down as the scenery changed. Gone was the wide green field…in front of him was a the edge of the woods and before him was a peaceful gentle brook tumbling over colorful rocks._

 _He was happy and content in this place. Just him and his horse._

 _He bent down to the water's edge as his horse drank and scooped up some water with cupped hands. Just as he drank the cool water he stopped cold._

 _He wasn't sure what he was seeing, but his spirit was alert and searching outward for trouble. Then his horse started whinnying and even started frothing from his mouth._

 _Then he felt the darkness coming for him. It's presence was heavy and cloying and he intuitively knew it was evil._

" _Save me, Shaman! The evil is coming!"_

Connor woke with a loud gasp. He looked around the room as his heart pounded in his chest. The room was quiet and Kira was staring up at him. "Jock, is everything okay?"

Connor closed his eyes in an effort to calm his heart. He felt the bed shift just a little and when he opened his eyes, Kira was sitting cross legged in front of him.

"I dunno…I had this dream and it was so vivid…the darkness is coming…it was suffocating, and I couldn't breathe."

Kira nodded. "What kind of darkness is it? Is it ranger related? Should we go get Adam or Rocky?"

Connor shook his head. "No, I think this is a shaman thing. Whatever darkness is coming it's not alien and there was a horse involved. But it's odd, since I don't have a physical horse. I think I need to go to the dojo and do some meditation."

Kira nodded and pressed a sweet kiss to his lips. "Whatever darkness is coming, I'll be your backup."

Connor returned the kiss and smiled at his wife. "Then I'll be formidable."

After quickly going through his morning routine, he slipped on his sandals and headed out to the Dojo. Thankfully, it was quiet and peaceful. He knelt down on the mats in the meditative pose he'd learned from his father and began his breathing exercises.

He let his senses flow outward and recalled the dream he had and tried to figure out what it meant. Another hour passed and still nothing came to him, though he felt very calm and relaxed.

He looked up as his father walked in an knelt in front of him.

"Good morning, Son. I'm finding you out here more and more. Is something troubling you?"

Connor nodded. "I had a strange dream and it felt real and even though I'm calm, my senses tell me that we're going to encounter some kind of darkness today, and I don't think this is a ranger thing."

David nodded seriously. "Tell me your dream and I might be able to help you understand it."

Connor closed his eyes and focused. David leaned forward a little as his son recalled the dream. When he was finished, David sat back.

"You're right, I think this is shaman related. Your spirit guide is a horse so it would make sense that you would be drawn to other equines. The darkness you speak of is much more worrisome. Being that it's so close to Samhain, I wouldn't be surprised that there would be a lot of witches working magic, both light and dark. Not to mention that we're going to a farm today, and a lot of dark practitioners would indulge in cattle mutilation for spell work."

Connor nodded. "What should we do?"

David looked around him, suddenly hearing the kids running their way. He smiled. "Enjoy our day at the farm and drink lots of apple cider. Have fun with the kids, but keep your senses open for trouble. Most likely, it'll find us."

Just as he finished speaking, Kayla walked into the dojo with a happy expression on her face. Right behind her, was Belle who greeted them with happy tail wags and a loud "Barooo!"

Connor laughed and looked at Kayla. "You know we don't allow the dogs into the dojo."

Before Kayla could respond, the cute little beagle was sitting in Connor's lap looking up at him and licking his chin.

That made Connor laugh even more. "Like owner, like dog, she thinks she can get away with anything by looking cute and giving butterfly kisses."

David laughed heartily. "It's better you learn that now rather than later. Cute little girls always get their way. it doesn't matter if that girl is human, canine or feline."

Connor shook his head in amusement as bella made herself at home in his lap. "So, what brings you out here this early? Are you all packed and ready to go?"

Kayla nodded. "I'm just excited about the farm. I'm going to meet a fairy kitten today!"

Connor looked at his father and then at Kayla. "A real fairy cat? What makes you think so?"

"I dreamed about her today. She was a pretty black kitty with green eyes and two sets of ears. She's special!"

Connor nodded and looked at his father again. When he looked back at Kayla, he added, "I need you to promise me that if you run into this fairy kitten and she needs help, you'll come and get me. I don't want you to try and take down any big adults by yourself. Okay?"

Kayla nodded. "I promise. I hated being grounded and I don't wanna be in trouble again."

"Good. Now you should go back up to the manor; I'm sure that Jude will be here soon."

Kayla gave him a big hug and then led Bella back to the house.

David shook his head. "That was adorable."

Connor nodded wryly. "I'm starting to think that my dreams were visions and they were giving me a heads up about what's waiting for us on the farm."

David nodded. "I think you're right. In case we end the day with another mouth to feed, we should pick up a small kennel and a blanket to take with us."

"The Miscreants have a small kennel in their mobile response unit. I'm sure they won't mind us borrowing it."

* * *

By the time father and son walked back up to the manor, they found a flurry of activity going on around them. Kayla was talking excitedly with Raine while Eric helped his son slip into his new Monster Lights tennis shoes. The shopping trip the day before had been a whirlwind, and by they time they made it to Applebees, they were exhausted and almost every clothing item they'd bought for Kailen had a 'glow in the dark' element. They'd found a specialty store in the mall, which was called Luminaries that sold that kind of stuff exclusively and the little boy had acted like the excited four year old that he was supposed to be and the store had made a killing off of them and they were eagerly invited to come back to see them in the future.

Eric had also made some purchases on their brother's day out and now he had a brand new stroller for Kailin to use while at SeaWorld and he had also bought a lot 'dad' items in manly looking Camo that he now showed off.

The minute he walked in the kitchen, Raine got an excited look on her face and she ran up to him, throwing her arms around his neck. Connor grinned as he picked up his little sister in his arms and hugged her tightly.

"I'm so happy to see you again! You all ready for the trip?"

"Yep, Momma helped me pack and we even got my Halloween dress from the cleaners this morning!"

"That's awesome! Have you seen Kira up here yet?"

"Nope, and I'm not about to go wake her up, I remember how Mama was when she was gonna have River. She got cranky if I woke her up before eight."

Connor chuckled and hugged his little sister again. "Right, I'll go check on her then."

Just as he set her on her feet again, He heard the sound of twin motorbikes in the driveway and a second later, Kayla jumped up from her seat. "Jude's here!"

Raine watched them go and her smile fell. "She's twitterpated."

Connor grinned and hugged Raine again. "Being Twitterpated isn't so bad. I'm crazy for Kira and one day, you'll be feeling those intense emotions too and it's one of the best feelings in the world!"

He fought the urge to laugh when she gave him a skeptical look. "Okay, if you say so."

"I do. Now why don't you go check and make sure you have everything ready for the trip. We'll be leaving soon."

* * *

"Alright, this is the route we're going to take to the farm." Rocky said as he showed the digital map to Skull and Ariel. The Rustic Ridge lodge is just a few miles from there."

"I've heard of that place." Ariel said thoughtfully. "It's got nice reviews."

Rocky nodded. "It came highly recommended by Alma; she's got one heck of a network. She knows the people who own it and they gave us a virtual tour and a discount since we've got a large group."

Rocky paused to tap an icon on the map. "This is where Spooky Acres is. Everything is set up for the trip. All that's left to do is to get the kids settled into the RV and get going."

* * *

 **Spooky Acres**

 **Several hours later**

Jude stood in front of the booth and lined up his shot. He stuck his tongue out between his teeth and tossed the ring. It landed perfectly around the bony arm sticking up from the ground of the spooky foggy graveyard.

"You did it!" Kayla cheered pumping her fist in the air. He grinned widely at her and then looked back the teenager working the booth that was asking him what prize he wanted.

"I'd like the Halloween bear, please!"

"Sure, kid. It's all yours!"

The bear was the biggest one on the rack and about half his size. It was not what was normally given after only one win, but the teenager shot him a knowing grin as he handed the big orange and black bear to Jude who then gave it to Kayla who grinned widely at him.

Everyone awed at the ridiculously cute little couple as they walked away hand in hand. While the two little soul mates were oblivious to the attention they attracted, everyone at the orchard had noticed. Kira chuckled as she sent the video to Kimberly.

She'd been doing this periodically as they walked around Spooky Acres and acting as the chaperones for this incredibly special first date. This festival was a happy place and she'd noticed that unlike the carnivals she'd been to before, most of the games were actually winnable and they were geared towards kids.

Soon after arriving at this orchard, the kids had been fully immersed in the atmosphere. It was about an hour or so before dusk and that was what everyone was waiting for. The haunted hayride.

Kayla and Jude had done exactly as they'd promised and they along with Raine had helped little Kailen carve his first Jack O lantern. It was pretty much the standard design and the little boy had been having the time of his life. Once the pumpkin had been carved, Isabelle, the kindly co owner of the orchard had taken it to a mobile cooler that had been set up that would help slow down the inevitable decay; the pumpkins would last much longer this way.

After that activity had been done, Kailen's eyes had landed on a few other booths dedicated to merch; one of these involved T-shirts and airbrushes. Another featured student artists and caricature drawings. They'd be occupied for a while.

Jude and Kayla had wanted to play some games, and that was where they were now.

Axel shadowed the two cuties as they walked around the orchard and grinned with pride as his little brother won the ring around the skeleton hand game. Skull and Ariel had spoken privately with their son and had told him that they wanted to take a couple hours for themselves and asked him to keep an eye on his little brother. Mavis, his younger sister had gone off on her own wanting to spend some time alone.

Axel was the oldest, and so he graciously took on the job of shadowing his little brother on this incredibly special date.

Up ahead, the festival scenery changed. While most of the festival centered around grave yard ambience, this section of the orchard had been transformed into a spooky pirate cave. The entrance of the game had it's own facade and the fog hugged the ground and the water effects were adding to the whole experience.

The moment they walked up the ramp to the platform of a sunken pirate ship, they were welcomed by an odd-looking mermaid. She was plus sized with dark skin beauty. She had a welcoming face framed by blue dreads and she wore a sparkling purple corset and her tale was that of a shark with it's wicked looking fins. Around her waist, where scale met flesh, she wore a pitch black sash with a light purple rose and in the middle of the flower was a metallic skull.

"Welcome to the treasure cove." She said with a grin. "This is a fishing game. Once you've been given a rod, cast the line and when you feel a tug on the line, reel it in and see what you can drag up from the depths!"

As she said this, another teenager dressed in a badass pirate costume walked up to them and greeted the kids. While they played the game, Connor noticed the long look Axel was giving the strange mermaid. "You were a friend of my sister, Jessie, weren't you? I recognize that costume from her sketch book."

The mermaid gave him a small smile and then nodded. "We were both theater nerds and I loved Mermaids but could never find a costume for girls my size. She designed it for me a few months before the cancer took her; It was already being fabricated when she passed away. I was hesitant to wear it, but when my team and I were tasked with creating this fishing game, I decided that it should be shown off." Jessie paused a moment and bit her lip. "I hope you don't mind."

Axel shook his head and then realized that Connor and Kira were looking on in curiosity.

My sister was all about inclusion and she loved the idea of there being mermaids that weren't stick figures…she said that mermaids should come in all sizes." He grinned and looked back at Jessie. My parents would love to see one of her designs come to life. They'll be here shortly if you're still around."

"I'll be here all night."

Just then the moment was broken as everyone heard Jude whooping with joy as he pulled out a hard-plastic capsule with a shiny black card inside.

Axel excused himself from the mermaid and walked over to his brother who was grinning at him.

"What did the sea goddess give you?"

"It looks like you hit the jackpot, young scallywag." The pirate answered. "It's a fifty-dollar reloadable visa. You've got plenty of spending money!"

Connor raised an eyebrow at that but grinned when Jude thanked the worker and then waited for Kayla to have her turn.

She handled it with confidence and gave the worker a puzzled look when she pulled up a small capsule with a tag on it.

He gave her a big smile. "That means you've won a prize that's too big for a capsule." He led her over to a wall with a bunch of posters on it.

"Alright milady, you get the poster of your choice; nothing's off limits."

Kayla looked over the wall and cocked her head when she saw Spyro the Dragon. She'd never played the game, but she liked the look of the main character. "I like the purple dragon!"

He nodded and then pulled out the right rolled up poster and handed it over to her. "Here you go, young maiden! Best leave it with yer guardians. It'd be a shame if it got messed up!"

* * *

When they walked back out into the farm area, Kayla spied a young boy with messy blonde hair sitting sadly at a picnic table near the petting zoo. Almost as if they were in sync Jude and Kayla walked over to him.

"Hey, are you okay?" She asked kindly.

The little boy looked up at them and tried to smile…it didn't reach his vibrant blue eyes.

Connor quietly scanned him and saw that his colors were there, but they were dim; much like the way Kayla's had been back in Angel Grove.

"I'm fine…"

Kayla looked up at him and he subtly shook his head.

You sure about that? You look pretty sad to me."

"Not sad…scared."

Kayla let go of Jude's hand and sat next to the little boy. "What're you scared of? Can we help you?"

Just as he was about to answer, he gasped and shook violently. Kayla shuddered almost at the same time and looked all around her. A black Jeep Cherokee with a bloody red skull drove up to the barn and revved it's engine aggressively.

Connor gently pushed the children behind him and stood protectively in front of Kira. When the scary looking teenager emerged from the car followed by what he could only describe as a coven of witches and a couple warlocks emerged from the car, he scanned them and immediately felt sick to his stomach. Their auras were pitch black and he could sense evil vibes coming off of them.

"The darkness." Kira cried softly. "It's here!"

"Yeah, I know." Connor replied softly. He looked over at Kira. I know you want to help, but I can sense really dark vibes flowing from them. I don't want you or our baby anywhere near them."

Kira felt nauseated, but she only nodded. "Yeah, I'll go get David and Diesel."

"Take the kids with you and get to safety."

Kira nodded and offered her hand to the little boy. "Come with me, it's not safe for you here."

Connor squared his shoulders and walked towards the barn. Unbeknownst to him, Kayla and Jude were behind him.

By the time he got to the barn, the witches were already surrounding the young woman, who had to be the young boy's mother as she was feeding the two young fillies that were in her care. One of them looked exactly like the horse in his dreams…

A moment later, he looked down feeling Kayla slip her hand into his.

"What're you doing?" He demanded in a whisper. "I told you to go with Kira."

"It's the darkness!' She whispered. When he looked at his young cousin, her eyes were glowing a bright green and a few tears were streaming from her eyes.

"Yeah, I know."

* * *

 **Sorry about the cliffhanger. I had the confrontation written down, but the chapter was already at ten pages and I felt that the fight needed its own chapter.**

 **I can promise that the wait will be worth it. I have a really cool showdown in mind!**


	13. Frightful Fiends

**Told ya I wouldn't take long!**

 **I did my best to get this chapter written in a timely manner; I'm not a fan of cliffies myself, so I wasn't about to leave you guys hanging for long.**

 **Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. For this chapter, there's only a language warning and of course, brief violence that comes with an epic if brief battle and then there's some cuteness involved at the end.**

 **Lastly, this chapter is another example of the chapter writing itself. I won't elaborate on what that means; you'll understand by the end of this chapter.**

 **Now with all that being said, read on and enjoy!**

* * *

 **Continued from the last chapter:**

 ** _Connor squared his shoulders and walked towards the barn. Unbeknownst to him, Kayla and Jude were behind him._**

 ** _By the time he got to the barn, the witches were already surrounding the young woman, who had to be the young boy's mother as she was feeding the two young fillies that were in her care. One of them looked exactly like the horse in his dreams…_**

 ** _A moment later, he looked down feeling Kayla slip her hand into his._**

 ** _"What're you doing?" He demanded in a whisper. "I told you to go with Kira."_**

 ** _"It's the darkness!' She whispered. When he looked at his young cousin, her eyes were glowing a bright green and a few tears were streaming from her eyes._**

 ** _"Yeah, I know."_**

* * *

Connor looked back up at the confrontation and gently pushed Kayla behind him. The evil presence was intense and strong. It was stifling.

As he took a moment to gather his wits, he heard the woman raising her voice in anger.

"…And I'm telling you the same thing I said before. I know you traffic in dark magik and you're the one responsible for killing that young mare! I won't allow you to torture any more innocent animals!"

"You don't have a choice, Bitch. Hand over that cat or I'll cut you down where you stand and that little whelp of yours will be the one to find your corpse."

Connor felt his anger snap at the threat. His inner shaman flared to life before he even realized what had happened. He was angry and hated the dark atmosphere around him.

"Not a chance, witch." Connor said in a dark voice. "This woman has already told you 'no' and I won't allow your wickedness to pollute the air any longer."

The witch turned to him waving her knife threateningly. "Do you know who I am?"

Connor looked her over and noticed the pentagram tattoo on her wrist. It resembled the one he'd spied on the wrist of Sapphire's mother, but this one had a goats head in the middle. This one looked evil.

"I think you've watched 'The Craft' too many times." He answered. "You're no Nancy."

The witch narrowed her eyes at him, and he saw the pupils turn a shiny black. She gripped her anthame and in a split second hurled it at him. But this time, it stopped in mid air, and hovered over the ground.

"What the fuck?" She hissed in anger.

Suddenly a huge gust of wind picked up in the barn and the horses whinnied in fear.

The witches gasped in fear as Eric finally made himself known. His powers were fully manifesting; his eyes were a ghostly blue as he walked into the barn with his hands out at his sides.

"You should watch your language in front of the children."

The witches looked very frightened now. Both twins were in full shaman mode and looking for all the world like mighty guardians.

This stops now." Connor told them.

When the head witch opened her mouth to speak, Eric gestured and the wind picked up and surrounded her, and then with a wicked grin on his face, he gestured again and the wind swirled even more, messing up the girl's carefully styled hair.

When she cursed even louder, Eric added, "If it wasn't apparent before, I have authority over the very air in here. If I wanted to, I could render you breathless."

Connor looked over at his twin and then back at the coven. "You may have come here with the intention of stealing helpless animals for terrible reasons, but now you're going to leave empty handed." Connor added. "I can commune with the spirits of this land. Your very presence violates them and they're angry."

"I won't even bother to hold them back if they decide to take revenge for what you've done. You should leave while you still have a chance."

They coven cursed at them, but hurried to leave. When they were gone, both men took a moment to peacefully dismiss their powers. Only when they were themselves again, did they realize how tired they were. A second later, they realized that the mother was still there, gaping at them…or rather at Eric in wonder and definitely appreciating what he'd just done for her.

Yeah, she was totally into him.

He grinned and then turned to his brother. "Bro, you good?"

Eric snorted. "Yeah, but I can see what you meant about how draining that is. I could seriously go for a triple bacon cheeseburger!"

Then, as if to remind Connor that she was still there, the ghostly mare got his attention again. She knickered at him and he got the impression from her that she was worried about her foal and what his fate would be.

He didn't know how he could do it but when he put his hand out palm up, she nuzzled it and he was able to feel her cold breath. "I know you're the mother." He whispered to the mare. "I'll take care of him."

The horse nickered at him again and then trotted over to the woman and nuzzled her too. The woman cried softly and whispered. "I'll miss you too, Mystique."

The last thing the mare did was trot over to her foal and nuzzle it. The baby neighed in distress as the mother bid her baby goodbye.

Then she turned back to face Connor and they shared of a moment; eyes met before the beloved mare vanished into the night.

When the moment was over, the woman took a deep steadying breath and approached the twin brothers.

"Thank you for saving us."

Before Connor could speak, Eric said, "I'm happy to help; evil like that shouldn't be allowed to exist."

"The evil is gone for now, but I don't know what I'll do if they return."

"The only solution is to send them somewhere safe." Said another voice. Everyone turned to see Mr and Mrs Danvers walking towards them. They were the owners and operators of the orchard. Rocky was with them. Just behind them, David and Diesel with matching looks of pride on their faces.

Connor saw them and sighed. "Did you see all of that?"

"Yeah, we did and we're incredibly grateful that you protected the animals. Those wannabe witches have been doing their damndest to intimidate us into giving them that cat. We don't have the evidence to prove it, but we know that one of them contributed to that mare's death. It took a long time and a good chunk worth of donations to get her to full health and only a half hour for her to be beaten to death."

"It would have been horrible if those witches had managed to get to her baby too."

The husband hugged his wife tight. "Well, they're gone for now…but now we need to figure out a way to safeguard the foal and the kitten."

This whole time the two kids were watching the conversation, but now Kayla spoke up.

"Sir, we can take care of the fairy kitten!"

Mr. Danvers looked down at the little girl. "What fairy kitten?"

"I had a dream about the kitten. He's got four ears and a stubby tail."

When he looked back at Connor in question. "We're not sure but she's showing signs of having latent shaman abilities. She hasn't even seen the kitten and she knows things about it."

When the little boy walked back into the barn with a little ball of black fur in his arms. Kayla turned to him with a sad smile on her face.

"You should take Twilight with you. He's not safe here anymore."

"Sawyer?" The young mom asked. "What are you doing?"

The little boy looked up at his mom. "You told me that Twilight is my responsibility. He's not safe here anymore; she's a superhero!"

"We can protect him. The Miscreants will help me!"

"You know the Miscreants?" The little boy asked.

Kayla nodded. "They live with us and two of them are my cousins. We've already rescued a few other kittens from a mean lady that threw them into a ditch."

Connor looked at Kira who had finally shown up as their little cousin effectively took over the conversation. When he turned his sight on the other woman, he saw that the mother was watching everything in disbelief.

When she looked back up them Connor confirmed the question in her eyes. "It's true. My best friend is their mentor. He'll be safe with us."

The mother sighed. "It's up to my son. I did say that the fate of that kitten was up to him."

Sawyer gave Kayla a sad smile and handed the kitten over to her. "You gotta sign the application to adopt him."

When Kayla looked up at Connor he smiled back at her. "It makes sense to me. Kira and I had to do the same thing when we adopted Tris."

Sawyer looked up at his ma. "I need your help too."

In the next moment, the foal whinnied at them not wanting to be forgotten. Connor turned to the foal. "I promise that I haven't forgotten you."

Kira squeezed her husbands hand. "I'll just go with Kayla to sign those papers. You still have some business to finish."

"Thanks, Rockstar."

When she walked away holding Kayla and Jude's hand, Mr Danvers continued the conversation.

"I've never heard of the Miscreants, are they a new rescue organization?"

They're a little more than that." Rocky commented. My son is one of them along with his girlfriend." He continued explaining what the Miscreants mission was. They'll be doing the heavy lifting so to speak, but we parents are going to be supervising just to make sure everything is legitimate."

"And the kittens?" Mrs. Danvers asked.

"That's true too, and the kittens were not the first animals to be rescued. Princess Buttercup had been shot point blank by some gang members and Rook ran ever stoplight to the nearest vet and saved her life. We were lucky the cops didn't arrest him on the spot."

"They sound like good kids."

"They are." David nodded. "I performed the cleansing ceremony myself. They've got the blessing of a shaman and their parents. They'll be aiding the Angel Grove Special Victim's unit when they get back from their mini vacation."

And what about you?" Mrs Danvers asked. Do you know anything about horses?"

Connor sighed. "All I know is that a beloved Mare asked me to look after her foal and it makes sense only because my spirit guide is a mustang and I'm a shaman in training. I know it'll take a team of professionals to care for him. I have zero experience, but I have no issue providing for his care. If I have to, I'll build a stable just for him to stay in."

"Horses need to be around others of their kind. I know of a professional stable near Angel Grove that he can stay in."

Connor nodded and then walked over to the foal who was pacing restlessly in his stall.

He snorted when Connor approached. "Easy, boy. You're going to be safe now."

When he held his hand out, palm up, the foal snorted and looked at his new master.

Connor looked back at the Danvers. "Does he have a name?"

"Not yet, naming him was the conundrum we were facing when his mother was killed. We normally wait for him to show his personality before we name him. however, he's going to be your horse, so now it's up to you to name him."

Conner turned back to the foal who seemed to know what was happening. He looked the horse in the eye and nodded to himself looking certain.

"Your name is Harley and your mine now."

The foal blew softly on his hand and neighed happily. When he looked back at the owners, they were smiling happily at him.

"What papers do I need to sign to make it all official?"

* * *

Conner signed his name on the dotted line, making his guardianship of the young foal official. He shook hands with Mr. Danvers.

"Congrats, you're the new guardian of a foal."

"Thanks." Conner answered with a grin. He paused and then asked. "Open an account under my name and I'll cover whatever tak or supplies he needs. When I get back from San Diego I'll settle up."

"Sounds good. How long will you be gone?"

"Only about a week or so. Our friends are getting married in a little over a week, so we need to be back for that."

Sounds good." Mr. Danvers answered and then paused. Do the Miscreants have a website?

"So far, it's just a Myspace Page, but I'm betting a new website will be up as soon as they get back."

* * *

 **About an hour later…**

Connor chuckled as he sat with Kira in the middle row of the dimly let trailer. They were being pulled by a powerful tractor and the woman dressed in dated clothing was retelling the classic American legend of 'Sleepy Hollow.'

As she narrated, the tractor pulled them through a replica of the sleepy town complete with a creepy scary and haunted grave yard. Eric sat across from him with a nervous Kailen clinging to him; the little boy had tried so hard to be brave, but when the ghosts had emerged from the gothic mausoleum, all bets were off.

Kayla and Jude, on the other hand were thoroughly enjoying themselves. Kayla sat with her grandparents and laughed at some joke he told her. Jude now sat with his parents whom had finally shown up and they were having just as much fun as everyone else.

Connor who had watched the Disney Cartoon previously knew what was coming as the scenery changed and the smoke machines started up. The poor Ichabod Crane (whom was played perfectly by a very skinny young man) walked out of the Van Tassel house and towards the spooky road. He mounted his horse and turned down the path and then a moment later paused hearing the music change.

Conner leaned into him with a low chuckled. "This is gonna be good!"

Across the way, Skull grinned at him and nodded.

Everyone watched in silence as the horse began to trot down the spooky road…and then was joined by none other than the Headless Horseman who road a massive black horse!

As they watched in horror, the massive black horse reared up in front of them and everyone could see the flaming pumpkin head in the headless horsemen hand. A second later, the horse and rider took off having spied their perfect prey.

Ichabod screamed loudly and took off, only to be chased by the massive black phantom. They all watched as the flaming pumpkin head went flying. The moment it hit the ground, red fireworks exploded and the small figure fell of his horse and disappeared.

"What happened to him?" Kailen asked in a scared voice.

The narrator was on point. "Well, young master. No one really knows. He was never seen or heard from again. All they found was his hat and a smashed pumpkin. Some people think the Hessian dragged him away, some think he left the town behind and found his fortune elsewhere. But whenever a townsfolk mentions that legend or of poor ichabod, old Brom Bones smirks devilishly and turns away.

As if to punctuate the story, heavy hoofbeats were heard again and the Headless Horsemen came rushing at them from the opposite direction and reared up at them.

He only lingered a moment more before racing away from them.

The last thing any of them saw as the trailer ended the trip, was the smashed pumpkin and the trampled hat.

As they pulled into the safety of the orchard, everyone clapped to show their appreciation.

Finally, feeling safe, Kailin lifted his head and his dad ruffled his hair. "We're safe now. You ready to go?"

As they walked back through the Spooky Acres, they saw that things were beginning to shut down for the night though there were just a few stragglers trying one last time to win the prizes that they'd not be able to get earlier.

Just before the exit, they saw that a table had been set up with a cauldron full of candy. Beside it, was a lighted up poster board with a short message on it:

 _Thank you for coming to Spooky Acres! We hope everyone had fun at our orchard and made many happy memories. The students you saw tonight put many hours and energy into every game and costumes for the haunted hayride. If you could find time, they ask for the visitors to visit their website and leave constructive criticism so they can better their work for next year!_

 _Have a fun and fanciful Halloween!_

 _-The Spooky Acres Team_

Just before the got to the gate, they saw Harley and Sawyer's mother, Isla waiting for them. The foal neighed loudly and danced around a little bit.

Connor grinned at the sight and walked over to the foal. He knelt down to the foal's height. "Hey, I promise that I'll be back to get you, but you gotta behave till then. Okay?"

The foal only leaned into him and Connor rubbed it's neck. "I'll see you soon, Harley."

When he got back up, he held out his hand to Isla. "Feel free to call me if anything comes up with him." he paused to see the young woman glancing at his twin's backside. "Or if you want my twin's number. He's very single."

Instead of seeing the young woman blushing, she was grinning. "No need, I'll be seeing you guys soon enough. I've have friends over at the stables by Angel Grove. Harley's mother was was my responsibility. I sat with her when she delivered him and I don't feel comfortable with just anyone looking after her foal."

Connor nodded. "Then I'll be looking forward to see you soon."

"Enjoy your road trip."

When they got back to the SUV, Eric was looking at him with narrowed eyes. "You're setting me up?"

"More like talking you up. You deserve to be as happy as I am with Kira."

"I'm not ready for another relationship, Bro. I just got out of one."

"Look, it's not a set up; I just adopted a foal and I need an expert who knows what she's doing. I'd be more willing to pay for someone like her that already knows Harley and won't cut corners. If you happen to find love in the process than it's a win-win for everyone."

Eric shook his head. "I hate that I can't disagree with any of that logic."

Connor grinned. "Just go with it. Now, I'm sure that you're anxious to get to the cabin and get Kailen put down for the night. So, let's get going."

Eric sighed and got into the back seat next to his son's car seat.

Just as Connor opened the door to the driver's seat, Kayla and Rocky walked up to them.

"Great work today. Tommy will be proud."

"You're not going to join us for the night?"

Rocky shook his head. "Nah, I really miss my mate and I hate the idea of sleeping alone. Not to mention that I need to make a stop at Walmart to pick up a few supplies. This little girl needs a few things before we get back to the Manor. If you have anything you need me to take back to Angel Grove, now's the time."

"Nah, we just got started, but I did just adopt a foal. We're going to have to rework the budget to fit him in."

Rocky grinned. "Got it, I'll talk to the accountant when I get back."

"Forget it." Diesel interjected. I'll cover his care."

When Conner looked at him, Diesel added. "I've missed over 18 years of birthdays, I'll be making up for them this way."

Conner shook his head and then handed over the business card that he'd gotten from Isla. "Here's Isla number, she's the one that's going to be in charge of Harley's care."

Rocky pulled out his phone and took a snapshot of the business card. "Got it, now you better get going; we'll see you when you get back."

Connor paused and then looked at Rocky again. "You don't seem shocked that I've suddenly adopted a horse."

Rocky shrugged nonchalantly. "How do you think we got Psyche and Mischief? We never thought we'd have a house full of dogs, but when Billy moved in, he started finding out that his wolf spirit drew other canines to him; we've all just learned to roll with it.

Rocky paused again. "However, I would be appreciate it if you didn't decide to adopt any orcas during your trip to Sea World."

Connor laughed out loud, "I promise the only orcas we bring home will be the decorative variety."

"Good, now if you don't mind, I really want to get on the road. I'm missing 'Ish like crazy."

* * *

When Connor climbed into the driver's seat of the SUV, he looked at Kira. "So, I guess our family has expanded some more. I hope you're okay with it."

Kira only smiled at him. "Seeing you happy like that makes it worth it. We're going to have the most unique family photos ever."

"Really? You want to include all of them?"

Kira grinned and nodded at him. "Yeah, Tris was our first, and now we have Harley and this little orca will make three. I kind of like having that idea of even having them in our maternity shoot.

Connor held up their joined hands and kissed them. "You are the most amazing wife and partner ever."

Kira leaned over and kissed him. "I love you too and this amazing wife you speak of suddenly craves a large fry and a milkshake. Would you mind?"

Connor grinned and looked at the rear-view mirror. Eric was fast asleep and so was Kailen.

"Yeah, we can drop by whatever is open before we get to the Lodge."

And with those words, he pulled out of the parking lot and onto the road.

* * *

 **I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter and that it was worth the wait! I did my best to make the showdown worth the wait. The plotline of the mare and her foal were what took me so long to write the previous chapter. I knew I wanted it to happen, but wasn't sure how to lead up to it.**

 **Anyway, the next chapter will be in the Miscreant's story which I have been chomping at the bit to get to. (It's pretty much the portion of the story I've been looking forward to all this time!)**

 **See you guys next chapter!**


End file.
